IT - Chained to a Clown
by NikitaJones
Summary: Nikita Jones is new to town and is trying to start a new life in Derry, Maine. She is quickly haunted by a sinister creature and finds out that she is not the only one experiencing it. However the creature Pennywise, has caught her scent. And now, he is on the hunt. Nikita's world will be turned completely upside down in this gruesome fight for survival. Reviews welcome! Enjoy! :)
1. Chapter 1 - A New Start

Hello Everyone!

Before you get started in reading my story, please take note of a couple things.

I do not own any characters or content from the IT franchise, nor do I claim to have any part in their creation.

This is simply a Fan Fiction story that I wanted to share with those that I believe will enjoy it!

All original characters in my story are not based off of any one living or dead, and I also need apologize in advance for some of my spelling and grammar. It has never been my strong suit, but I am doing my best to tackle them by reviewing each chapter multiple times, even after they are posted.

I love writing stories! This is my first "will be completed" story, so I hope that you enjoy it!

One last thing about my story is a quick apology for the silly start.. I found that I have grown a lot in my story development since I began this FanFic. But ya gotta start somewhere! But, one day I may return to develop it better..

Now, with out any further interruptions... WELCOME to

IT - CHAINED TO A CLOWN

* * *

Chapter 1 - A New Start

Derry; a tiny run down looking little town with lots of history and nothing to show for it. It's a place where young families move to in hopes of having a wonderful life, and where the defeated elderly retire; nothing else. Its' surface screams for a new coat of paint, but no one ever gives it what it needs. Most people leave this town with a bad taste in their mouth and never return. But to me, it's a new start; a bright future against my faded grey past.

I grunted a little as I lifted another moving box and dropped it onto my _'new'_ old table, which was cracked and chipped, displaying its lifetime worth of stories on its surface. I slid my knife along the top of the box as its contents started sprouting though the crack as if desperately gasping for air.

"Guess I packed this one a little too tight." I half chuckled to myself, prying the top flaps open.

Knock, knock, knock.

"Miss Jones, are you home?" Friendly voice cooed from the other side of my front door. I hustled over to open it, and saw a smiling little elderly lady in an old fashioned turquoise dress. It had white frills around its neck and arms, matching buttons down the front and a thin black belt in the middle; it was Mrs. Bocswell, my landlord.

"Good after noon Mrs. Bocswell! Come on in, how are you?"

"Good dear, good," she hummed, shuffling her slip on shoes past the threshold, "How are you making out?"

"Great! I think it may take some time to finish unpacking," I giggled sarcastically smiling and pointing to the six boxes spread about the room, "but I'm sure I will find space for it all." I paused, watching her smile at my boxes and then back to me, her head was shaking slightly, "Would you like some tea? I believe I have a kettle and some mugs in this box over here." I rushed over to the box I had just set down on my table.

"Oh, no thank you hun, I do have a few stops to make today, so I had better get moving. This old hip of mine doesn't mosey like it used to." She patted my solder and started shuffling towards the still open door. "Let me know if you need anything, Miss Jones." She took my hand as I leaned on the door jam, and gave it a pat. "You are my youngest tenant, so I have to make sure you get all comfy and settled in your new home. Don't forget about the cute little diner down the street I told you about." She turned and headed down the hall, waving her hand back at me. "Good Luck, dear! Have a great day!"

"Yes, thank you! You too, Mrs. Bocswell!" I smiled some more as I watch her hustling her frail frame down the worn out stained carpet. Closing the door I thought back to her comment about me being her youngest tenant.

Mrs. Bocswell doesn't really know my story; most people assume a girl in their 20s moved out of a home with a family; striking out on their own for the first time, but that is not my case.

I walked over to the couch and sat down beside the box that was propped up delicately with pillows. The box had a black star drawn in sharpie on its side. _This holds my only meaning full items in my life; it holds who I am_, I thought to myself.

* * *

I have never had a real family, not in the traditional sense anyway. I grew up in the Meadow Springs Association, an orphanage in New Orleans. Reaching my teenage years, I gave up all hope of finding a family of my own, so I started working there, giving hope to the younger ones and assisting the owner and workers cook and clean. Once I reached 18, the head of the house, Miss Ketsel, a skinny young lady with a soft voice and a heart of gold, started encouraging me to move on and spread my wings beyond the orphanage. She had told me that I am not destined for a life like hers, and that I am meant for greater things. Meadow Springs was the only family I have ever had, and I felt as if they wanted me to leave, and I couldn't help but feel unwanted.

I began exploring the French Quarter, and spent less time in the orphanage. I got lost in its history and its culture. I started collecting small things; essential oils and so on. But after a few years I dipped into witchcraft; it comforted me. Filling the spots of my soul that I felt were missing.

* * *

I reached into the cardboard box and pulled out a small wooden chest engraved with sacred markings and symbols. Inside it contained a talisman necklace, which had the same type of markings carved on its stone face, and small vial filled with a liquid that smelt like vanilla; both items where blessed by a voodoo priestess whom I had grown close to though out the years. I held the wooden chest close to me, and peered back into the cardboard box to see the rest of my witchcraft items. My cards, my candles, my crystals, my blessed water, my tea set and my incense; all wrapped up in a dark silk scarf. These items were all I had left of what I had once called home.

* * *

The owner of the orphanage decided that there was too many over age orphans, and asked Miss Ketsel to assist most of us to move away from Meadow Springs. There were only two of us still living there, three including her, but I believe the head of the house had a thing for her, and every so often it was time to clear out the _'unwanted'_.

As kind as Miss Ketsel was in assisting me leave, there was a cold door closing behind me that slowly creaked closed as I left the gates; its deadbolt sliding though and locking forever. The final sound of its latch echoed in my ears, as I waited for the bus. Fear washing over me like a bad stink as I stared into the unknown.

BANG!

I jumped! Getting violently pulled back to reality by a commotion from the other side of my door, and across the hall. Muffled voices were spitting venous comments back and forth to each other, but I couldn't quite make out what they were saying. I walked over to the from door and looked though the peep hole, but no one was in the hall. I listened some more as something smashed and everything went quiet. As far I could tell from the muffled voices, it sounded like a man and a young girl.

I turned to see what I had to do next on my list, but suddenly felt no motivation to unpack any more. I decided to return to it in the morning.


	2. Chapter 2 - The Kids Next Door

Chapter 2 - The Kids Next Door

Rather then packing it in for the night, I decided to head down to the Diner for a bite to eat. It had giant pink neon letters spelling out the word 'Diner' on the top of its silver retro roof, and a 50s style exterior. The inside wasn't too far off of the theme; there were a dozen or more red leather topped stools lining the bar front, and black and white checkered tile flooring. There appeared more booths than tables and chairs; all lining the walls where giant windows stood tall.

I slipped into one of the booths far enough away from the front door, so that I wouldn't feel the cool breeze from outside as people came and went. I ordered fries and a vanilla milkshake, then leaned back in the booth seat and watched all of the people who surrounded me; I saw couples and families, singles and friends. I sunk back in my chair a bit more, feeling a bit like a fly on a wall with no one looking back at me, they just went about their lives, visiting and eating as if nothing else existed.

The diners front door bell chimed, as a group of kids entered and rushed to the booth behind me; five boys and one girl, but the girl had looked as though she had been crying for hours. Two of the boys walked slightly slower to match her speed, one tall and thin boy, and the other short and stout.

The girl mumbled beneath her quivering breath, "I just can't wait to move away from here, you know?" She held herself tight as she slid down the booth seat. "I can't wait to move away from _him_."

My fries and milkshake arrived, pilling my attention back to in front go me, the waitress slid my plate over to me in an '_I don't care much'_ manner as she asked me if I needed ketchup. I _did_ want ketchup, but feeling uncomfortable with her judgmental presence, I just said, "No thanks." She rolled her eyes and popped her gum as she continued on her way. Once she was gone I let my attention drift back to the children's conversation behind me.

"Bev, y-you could always jj-just r-run away now." The skinny kid beside her stuttered.

The girl shook her head, "I'd have no where to go."

The kid with glasses stood up abruptly, smacking the table causing the pre-placed mugs and cutlery to rattle as he stood and shouted, "Milkshakes all around!" He wailed and waved his hand, gesturing to his table staring at the sassy waitress. Once again she rolled her eyes and disappeared behind the double doors to the back kitchen.

"Are you kidding me, Richie? Thats how you get your food spat on!" The dark haired boy beside him wearing a fanny pack muttered as he grabbed his friend by the collar and yanked him down.

_The group of kids seemed nice enough_, I thought to myself, as I tried to eat my food as quiet as possible so that I could hear their conversation. From what I could tell, the girl, Beverly, comes from a pretty bad home. I felt bad for her. _Maybe a life with no family is better than a family that you hate_, I thought. There was the stuttering boy who had bright blue eyes, Bill, and the over weight boy, Ben, who wore a large hoodie; both of which sat on either side of Beverly. Then there was the loud mouth boy, Richie, and the smallest kid, Eddie, who seemed very concerned about the contents of his milkshake as the waitress walked up to their table and plopped it in front of him. The final kid was tall for his age, he had curly hair and never spoke a word; he blended right in with the woodwork, and it took a long time for someone to say his name, Stanley.

I sat and listened to the bunch of them talk for a long time. It may have been about 20 minutes since I finished my fries and milkshake, but I found the group of them to be really interesting. They were all so different, and yet they all were together to support Beverly in her time of need. I was so sweet. For a moment, I pretended to be with them, laughing and bonding. It feels like forever since I felt that kinship; _if I ever had it_. Leaving the orphanage left such a smudge on my past, that I wasn't sure if I was ever really happy there.

I began feeling like it was becoming obvious that I was only sitting there listening to them talk; the rest of the diner was clearing out and there was only a few tables of people left. I got up to pay for my meal at the counter, sliding myself between the stools, and trying not so look suspicious as I glanced back to the kids, trying to get one last glimpse of what my life could have been if my life was normal. Hear of the kids had smiles on their faces as they continued to goof off. I heard a throat clearing beside me and I quickly looked back over the counter to see the sassy waitress standing there still chewing her gum.

"Thank you," I said to her, glancing down at her name tag, "Gladis. I hope you have a good night." I slid some cash across the counter to her as she made some snarky remark under her breath, and turned away. The kids all started to shuffle their way out of the booth as well, so I tuned to leave hurriedly, avoiding eye contact as I scooted though the big glass doors.

Outside seemed slightly cold for a spring evening, and the air tasted heavy with rain. I jogged quickly to make it to my apartment just across the small brick bridge and over the narrow river. I opened the small glass door to the apartment building as it started to drizzle. _Just in the nick of time_, I thought to myself, as the rain began to pour down like a wall.

After pressing the button for the elevator, I rubbed my arms in a sad attempt to fight back the army of goose-bumps rising on my skin. The door opened behind me, and I could hear the heavy rain drops hitting the concrete outside, followed by wet footsteps entering the building.

"It doesn't work," Said a familiar voice from behind me, the sound of it sent quick shock waves through my body and I turned quickly to see who spoke. It was the girl from the diner, Beverly. "It's never worked." She gestured towards the door to her right. "Unfortunately you gotta take the stairs."

I stared at her for a second, lost in thought about her sad story and all that I heard about her and her friends back in the diner; I wondered if she could see though me and my guilt, and if she could see just how much I knew about her.

"Oh, thanks!" I blurted, pretending I had no idea who she was. I held out my hand to her, "My name is Nikita Jones, I'm new to building."

"I can see that," she snickered as she looked me up and down, then reached out and shook my hand. "Beverly Marsh." Her hand was wet and cold from being outside, but her smile was warm and inviting. Her red hair was beaten down from the rain, and her clothes didn't look any better as the ends of her long shirt dripped water on the old tile floor. Smiling, we both turned to walk into the stairwell. "So a vanilla milkshake and fries for dinner, eh?"

I stumbled a bit on one of the steps, surprised that she recognized me. "Yup, that's my meal of choice." I managed to squeak out, trying to ignore the fact that she might know that I was listening to her and her friends.

"Yea, hmm. Listen what ever you heard back there, ignore it. It never happened."

Shocked, I decided to stay silent, and I could feel a lump in my throat as I tried to swallow. She was so forward and abrupt, that my mind just shut down to any possible responses; I was worried they would either make me sound creepy, or stupid. We stepped off on the same floor landing and the air began feeling heavier, and more awkward.

"You don't need to follow me." She spat as we walked down the hall.

"I'm not," I said quaintly, not wanting to upset her any further. "I'm in six." I lifted my keys and unlocked my deadbolt, watching her approach the door across the hall from me, her face looked shocked and her cheeks blushed in embarrassment.

"Oh." Her voice cracked slightly, as she watched me crack open my door slightly. She hesitated opening hers, and stood in the hall looking at the ground next to my feet, deep in thought. She blinked hard, then looked back up at me, her mouth open like she was about to speak. Then she quickly closed her mouth tight and rushed into her apartment, slamming the door tight behind her.

I stood alone looking into the empty the run down hallway; the light above me slightly flickered and buzzed. _Was that an attempted apology?_ I sighed and pushed the door open to my dark apartment.


	3. Chapter 3 - The First Encounter

Chapter 3 - The First Encounter

The morning was bright and brisk; not a single cloud in the sky. It smelt fresh from last nights heavy rain, and the grass had glistening drops of dew perched delicately amongst the lush green blades.

Today I was planning to apply for a job. Venturing from building to building, passing out my resume to the different shops and grocery stores along mainsheet. The people of Derry looked pretty happy, but I couldn't help but notice the _'Missing'_ posters taped, stapled and glued to walls and posts along the sidewalk. The people here seemed to not notice them at all. I walked up to one of the posts to read the details, but the wind picked up and the paper ripped from the single staple holding it there and floated across the street. It twirled in the breeze and swept past a boy leaning his bike on a light post in front of the meats store.

There was a rumple of and engine down the street and it grabbed my attention for a second. I looked back at the boy and it looked as though the car caught his attention too. He looked panicked, and grabbed his bike and hustled it down the alley way and the loud car approached. _Strange_, I thought.

I continued to walk down the road looking up at the different business names and tried to picture myself working at them. At this point I really wasn't picky, I just needed something to help me pay for rent and food.

It was nearly noon before I made it from one side of town and back. None of the places sounded like they were looking, and I doubt I would get a call back from any of them. Starting to loose hope, a sign caught my attention, _'Help Wanted'_. I turned to get a better look at the building. _Damn…_ It was the diner from last night. Mrs. Bocswell had suggested I work there when I first arrived at the apartment, yesterday afternoon, but I tried to ignore it. I've seen how hard it was to be a waitress and I'd much rather work in retail; but the tips could really help me at this point. Desperate, I hung my head and turned towards my less than desirable fate. _Here it goes_. I held my final printed resume tight to my side as I walked in the door.

"Be right with you hun." A friendly raspy voice rose above the lunch rush. I walked straight to the counter to see a tall, well built lady with tight curly, brown hair in a jean jumper suit and red heels that worn out from the miles she put on them running around the diner. She caught a glimpse of me holding my paper, and quickly placed down the tray of stacks of clean glass cups. She wiped her hands on her red apron and hustled over to me. "How can I help you?" She said as she glanced down at my paper, then back up at me.

Feeling slightly intimidated by her eye contact, I managed to formulate a sentence that hopefully made sense to her. "I would like to drop off my resume to you, in hopes that I can get a job here." I smiled, feeling like an idiot.

Without skipping a beat she took the paper and searched for my name. "Well, congratulations, Nikita. Your hired. My name is Rosie, and I will be your boss." I stared at her in shock.

"What?"

"You got the job, little miss. You start tomorrow, 8 AM sharp till Noon. You do good, you stay. You don't, well I shouldn't have to say." She picked up the stacked glasses again and began placing them under the counter. "See ya tomorrow, kid."

"Wow, Thank you very much!" I turned, leaving the diner with a skip in my step. _Not the job I wanted, but it's gonna pay bills for now_, I thought to myself.

Felling adventurous, I left the diner and turned to the forest and started down the hill. I followed the thick trees to a place where the river turned to a stream. It was quiet out there, the sound of far away birds whistling in the trees, the water trickling over the pebbles and though tufts of bullrushes; it was so relaxing. I sat down on one of the larger rocks by the stream and closed my eyes, feeling reality drift further way as I laid down to absorb the warm sun and rest.

* * *

I abruptly woke up to a sound unlike the others that I had fallen asleep to. It sounded almost rubber like. I opened my eyes to the blinding light of the afternoon sun; I raised a hand to block it and sat up slightly, propping my self up with my elbows. The fuzzy vibrant colours of the forest around me slowly focused, and what I saw seemed very out of place.

A big red balloon was floating down stream, bumping into the rocks and grassy patches in its path. _That's odd_, I thought to myself; it was almost mesmerizing how it was moving. I heard a slight jingle in the tall grass to my right, just a little ways down stream. Startled again, I sat up.

"Hello?" I sat there frozen for a moment or two as I squinted hard, trying my best to see if anyone was there. I could hear low quiet giggling in another direction.

BANG! The balloon burst making me jump out of my skin! I stood right up, gasping; my glance shifted between where the balloon was, and where I heard the giggling.

"GET BACK HERE, YOU FUCKING LOSER!" Someone shouted from behind me. I jumped again, this time I leaped across the rocks to the other side of the stream and hid in the bush.

Some older boys were chasing one younger one; I recognized him, I saw him delivering meat wrapped in packages to the meat store earlier that day. The boy tripped and landed hard on the rocks along the shore. One of the boys the was chasing him, who appeared to have a mullet, picked him up by his shirt and yelled in his face, while another one wearing a hat opened up a package of meat and chucked it open on the ground.

The mullet boy slammed his victim into the rocks beside the open package, and the crack was so loud, I could almost feel it myself. I sat there frozen; unsure of what I should do, fear was bubbling in my gut.

The mullet boy stepped on the back of the young kids head, forcing him to burry his face into the raw meat, as the fat one wearing the hat shouted, "EAT THAT MEAT! EAT IT BITCH, HAHA!" His tongue stuck out a little as he watched in anticipation.

This was discussing, and I had had enough. I tensioned my muscles to stand up, when I saw the boy on the ground look up at the tall grass beside the stream, thats where I heard the giggling from earlier. I followed his gaze and something was there; I couldn't my quite see what was, but the look of horror on the boys face said it all, and it didn't look good. He tried to stand, but the fat kid kicked him in the face, forcing his gaze away from the grass.

"Fucker!" The third kid shouted. The mullet boy launched at the boy on the ground, and growled in his face like a wild animal, then picked up a rock.

WHAM! Another rock from my side of the river pelted the mullet boy in the temple. Beverly, and her friends from the diner stood there on the banks. I watched quietly from the bush as I watched her and her friends continue to throw rocks and fight off the bullies. The boy on the ground, now bleeding from his nose and mouth crawled across the water to the shore opposite from his attackers. As the battle went on, one by one, the bullies retreated back into the bush where they came from, and out of sight. The little gang of friends rejoiced and high-fived each other as they too disappeared back into the forest.

Alone again, with the sounds of the river and the trees; I sat with my thoughts. I can't believe I froze there. It all happened so fast, and once the others arrived, I couldn't let them know I was there watching like a coward the whole time.

I was about to stand up and head home defeated, when I looked up to the opposite shore. A shadowy figure sat behind the tall grass across the stream where the boy had looked. I couldn't make out what it was, but from what I could see, it had a large head. The grass blew over, and waved in the wind. As the tall blades pushed each other around, I could see that there was nothing behind it. _How is there nothing there casting a shadow?_

I let out a small gasp, the shadow jerked as if it was about to chase me. This must be what the boy saw, and judging by his look, it wasn't good; I had to get out of there. I turned to run, trying my best to not look back. I heard something running across the river and through the trees behind me, it sounded inhuman, it moved at a much faster pace then I was. It sounded like it was getting closer to me. I was running as fast as I could, shoving branches and bushes out of my way; running up the hill, feeling as though I could not breath. I felt a tug on the back of my shirt and I screamed. I launched myself out of the bush and rolled onto a paved road. I felt my shirt rip, and I turned just in time to see a gloved hand, and an abnormally long puffy sleeved arm slowly dragging the chunk of my shirt back into the thick bush. I looked almost like a snake.

I crawled backwards to get more distance between me and what ever grabbed me as I watched it slide back into the trees. I flopped down on the warm pavement, panting and in shock.

"What the fuck?" A young voice said.

I sat up abruptly to see the group of kids from earlier; the boy with glasses, the loud mouth from the other night, was standing closest to me; his jaw dropped wide open, as the kids from the diner, and the now bloodied and bruised new boy, stood behind him. They were all stood there in shock, holding their bike handles tight.

"Are you okay?" Beverly dropped her bike and ran to my aid.

"I'm fine. Just a little out of breath." I studied their faces, each with a more shocked facial expression than the last. The Boy with the glasses finally closed his mouth, as he stepped forward to speak again.

"What the fuck was that?" His voice squeaked as he repeated himself and gestured towards the bush.

"I don't know." I puffed as I stumbled, attempting to stand. Beverly grabbed my arm and pulled me up. "_It_ just chased me."

"I-I tthhink tha-at was _IT_!" The tall boy with the stutter exclaimed.

"What is _IT_?" I looked at him.

"Bill, I thought _IT_ could only be seen by kids our age!?" The short one, Eddie, said before taking a deep drag on his puffer. All of them started bickering amongst themselves. Beverly tried to speak up a couple times but she was unsuccessful. Frustrated she threw her arms up in the air and plopped her hands on her hips, shaking her head. I turned to her, confused.

"Beverly, what is _IT_?" She looked directly in my eyes for the first time since last night, this time they weren't as angry.

"We don't know. But we think that he is the one behind all of the murders in Derry." She continued to tell me what every one else in her group of friends have seen over the last couple months, and how it seemed to have all started when Bills' brother, Georgie, died. I started to feel light headed, _IT_ sounded terrifying, and I wasn't a big fan of being afraid. I felt a head ache coming on, and I raised my hand to grab my temple as the world around me started to spin.

"Bev, I'm sorry I-I've got to stop you there." I raised my other hand. "I need to head home, I gotta lay down." She held out a kind hand towards me in hopes that I will take it and stay with them. I hesitated a moment, pondering if I should stay with all of these kids and learn more about his predator that haunted their town.

I began getting lost in my own thoughts. _Did I just witness something real? Or was it something that I only imagined? What if these kids are just toying with me?_ It is weird how all of them had experienced the same thing that I have, but in their own way. I wanted to know more from each of them, but I really felt like I needed to be alone and in my own space. My eyes drifted away from Beverly's' out stretched hand, and to her eyes. I smiled, "I should head back, I'm quiet tired after what just happened." She smiled, and dropped her hand back at her side.

"I understand," She replied, "but you come get me, if anything happens."

I nodded, and turned towards home.

"Hey, Nikita?" I stopped to look at her, "I'm sorry about the other night."

I smiled at her, and continued down the street. I had to get away from the crowd; I couldn't let anyone see just how much I was shaking in fear…


	4. Chapter 4 - The Obsession Begins

Chapter 4 - The Obsession Begins 

That evening was rough, I couldn't sleep. I sat on the couch completely awake and I couldn't turn off the lights. I was too paranoid from earlier that day; the beauty of that river tainted with thought of that gloved hand and extended arm sliding unnaturally back into the bush, dragging the torn piece of my shirt with it.

_IT_ frightened me, and I did not want to cross paths with _IT_ again, but part of me wanted to know what _IT_ was. Those kids seemed to know some something about _IT_, yet at the same time, nothing about _IT_. My heart was beating in my head, and all I could see was that damn gloved hand.

I stood up to start the kettle. _Maybe a tea will calm my nerves_. As I walked by the window the lights flickered and I stopped dead in my tracks. I turned my head to look out the window and down the street, only to see the same shadow from earlier. I felt my heart stop and I suddenly felt ill. The shadow was no longer in a squatted position, but standing upright like a person. It stood there, frozen in time. The wind picked up slightly and an old plastic bag drifted in front of the shadow, the dark figures hair shifted lightly in the breeze. It appeared to be a very tall man, and he seemed to have some sort of costume on. His eyes opened, glowing like two lightning bugs in the dark. I gasped and closed the blinds abruptly, and backed away from the window. _Was that IT!?_

Feeling the need for extra protection from this creature, I ran to my small wooden chest and pulled out the talisman necklace and vanilla bottle. I put the necklace on and drew an X on my chest with the vanilla liquid. Remembering what the Voodoo Priestess who blessed these items taught me. _These will protect me tonight_, I thought, and muttered a short chant under my breath.

Shaking, I returned back to the window to peek though the blinds, the street was empty. I took in a deep breath of relief. _Safe_. _Maybe it was just my imagination_…

I turned towards the kitchen and all of the lights turned off. I gasped again, covering my mouth with my hand, as the kitchen lights started to flicker sporadically. The shadow was there in the doorway.

"WHat th- FUCck?!" I stuttered as stumbled backwards, knocking over a side table, and collapsed on the ground beside it. _IT_s head twitched to the side, his hair flickered with the movement, and I could hear small bells tinkling as he moved. It was the same sound I heard by the stream.

The light in the room flicked on for an extended pause, and I could finally see _IT_s' face. I couldn't speak, I couldn't scream and I couldn't run; all I could do was watch as he stood there looking back at me.

It was a clown. His suit was light grey, he had a large warn out neck ruffle, a few red pompom buttons lining his chest, down to a high waisted belt and puffy pant tops. His shoulders and wrists were puffed out as well. His pants were slightly short, with ruffles at their base, and a pair of tall red and white boots to make up for his slightly short pants; two more pompoms were on his toes. He had tall orange hair, adding his intimidating hight. His white, cracked face paint practically glowed in the night, and his two red, dagger like, stripes connected his forehead, cheeks and mouth, accentuating his glowing yellow eyes and red painted nose.

I coward at the sight of him; the lights stayed dim and flickered excessively. He leaned forward giggled under his breath and pushed his lips together as he prepared to speak.

"Time to float." His voice was quivered with anticipation. He took a step forward and slowly swung his arms from side to side with every step he took towards me. I couldn't breath; I struggled for air and attempted to stand. I felt like I couldn't even function, the fear was racing through my body to quick and my limbs were shaking like crazy.

His eyes rolled back as he started wafting the air with his hands, almost gasping to taste the air around him. I grabbed the knocked over side table beside me and used it to get my legs underneath my body. I blinked and looked down at the table for a split second. When my eyes opened to look back at him, all I could see was his bright yellow eyes inches from my face. His long bottom lip sagged down, covered in drool. I took one quick breath as I watched his saliva drip on the table between us, his large gloved hands gripping the end of it opposite from me.

Finally getting the feeling in my legs again, I shoved the side table into him and turned for my bedroom door. He launched himself like a spider over top the table and headed straight for me, laughing hysterically. I made it to the door, and slammed it in his face, grunting from all of my effort. I held the door shut with my shaking hands.

All went quiet.

Relaxing slightly I turned to lean my back on the door to hold it in place. The clown pounced from in front of me and slammed my body against the door. I screamed; his face was inches from mine once again, his body pinned me so I couldn't move, and his hand quickly gripped my jaw, his fingers pushing my cheeks together and silenced my cries.

"Tasty, tasty, beautiful fear." His gruff voice echoed in my ears as his hand traced down to my neck. His other hand slid up the door behind me. I felt his weight on me slightly more and I tried to struggle, but it went unnoticed. His eyes started to look in opposite directions as he opened his mouth slowly next to my face. I could feel his hot breath on my neck, as his mouth split wider and wider, revealing shark like teeth inside. I could slowly see down his throat, where a light had emerged. Too afraid; I closed my eyes, I didn't want to see any more.

I felt him hesitate.

I opened my eyes to see is face fitting back together, lips and teeth returning to their original state. His eyes slowly lined back up again, but still glowed a deep yellow. His head tilted to the side. He looked confused as I heard him take a deep breath of the air around me.

He then closed his eyes and breathed in again, this time longer, and much closer to my chest. I cringed, unsure of what he was about to do next as his body pushed even harder into mine.

His arms shook a little as he pushed back, opening his eyes and twisting his face into a disgusted look. His eyes locked on mine and peered beep into my soul, his hesitation gave me some strength.

"Wwho are you?" I asked at a less then controlled volume. His chin dipped down and his eye brows crossed into a scowl. He screeched and looked straight up to the ceiling, as he exploded into blood. I screamed as it splashed like red paint all over the room and myself. I slipped on it as I flinched and landed on the ground hard, partially winding myself. But it was nothing compared to the near heart attack that I had when the clown exploded.

I laid there a moment, panting and sobbing uncontrollably till the ringing in my ears quieted down.

Once I could finally breath again, I sat up. Blood was dripping down the walls and ceiling, the smell was almost unbearable. I wiped as much off of my face as possible, but it didn't do much good; it only smeared more. I tried to crawl, sliding myself through the puddles of blood to the closest corner I could find. I laid down in a fetal position and cried myself to sleep.


	5. Chapter 5 - The Morning After

Chapter 5 - The Morning After 

I woke to the sun blasting intense light into my bedroom, I sat up quickly remembering last night. My eyes darted around the room, but nothing was wrong with it. All of the blood had disappeared; my room was completely clean. I felt my face and hair; clean.

I stood up, took in a deep breath and opened the door. Nothing was out of place. The blinds were open, and the side table was standing upright and in line with the couch. I checked the lights and flicked them on and off; they worked too.

_It must have been a dream_, I thought to myself. I made a tea and stood in front of the window looking out on onto the street where I thought I saw the figure from last night. Something in my reflection on the window caught the sun and glistened in the light; I looked down to see the talisman. _Of course!_ I remembered the clown stopped immediately after smelling my chest. _It must have been the talisman and vanilla liquid!_ I gripped the carved stone of the talisman and wondered if I should keep it on for the time being.

* * *

Lost in thought, I traveled back to my days in the orphanage. Just a few blocks from Spring Meadows, close to the heart of the French Quarter, was a quaint little hole in the wall named _'The Soul of Hex'_. It contained everything from crystals, to oils and spell books; candles to coins, and crocodile heads to mummified cats. It was the perfect store for those who believed in voodoo and witchcraft.

Close to the back of the store was a large silk cloth blocking the entrance to a small back room where a Voodoo Priestess practised her teachings, her name was Madam Marie Moora. She quickly became a good friend of mine. I began going there more and more often as she took me under her wing and taught me everything I needed to know about Voodoo. She was a beautiful tall and thin woman who always wore an African scarf on top her bald head. Her skin was as dark as night, and her eyes were the deepest brown. Madam Moora, gave me the talisman just before I left the orphanage.

I can still hear her gentle, soothing voice, "_Dis talisman will always protect you, my child. Go! And fallow yoa hart. For I will be wit you always._"

* * *

I looked back to the street outside. _I sure hope so_, I thought.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

"Oh, shit." The alarm in my bedroom wailed, making me jump. "I gotta get to work!"

7:30 AM, almost time for my first day. I quickly put down my unfinished tea and got my self ready to run out the door; I pulled my hair back into a messy bun and put on clothes that were _'cuter'_ than normal. I looked in the mirror one last time, making sure I had the talisman on, then put a fresh layer of vanilla liquid on my chest and took a deep breath in.

"Here I go."

I made it in the door of the diner precisely at 8:00 AM, and Rosie was right there to let me know how close I came.

"I almost started ta think you were skippin' out on me, girl! Quick, throw this apron on! Table 4 needs their coffee. Black."

I hustled behind the counter and tied the apron around my waist, then proceeded to carry the pot of coffee over to what I believed table 4 was.

The morning was crazy busy. The moment a table cleared, It filled back up again before I was able to clean it off. People would ask me things about the menu that I didn't know, and Rosie was right there to either help me, or scold me. But for a moment I was able to forget last night; it was a blessing in disguise and I began to feel like normal again.

Noon had arrived almost instantly, and I was out the door almost as fast as I had come through it earlier that morning. I flew through the door so fast that I hardly noticed the lady walking towards me. I bumped in to her and it pulled me back to reality. It was Gladis, the sassy waitress from the other night.

"Oh, I am SO sorry!" I gasped. She said nothing other then a slight scoff under her breath, and rolled her eyes. She then straightened her purse and continued on her way looking more irritated than ever, angrily ripping open the door and disappeared through it.

I slowed myself down, and forced my legs to walk back to my apartment, feeling as though I could concur the world.


	6. Chapter 6 - In Hiding

Chapter 6 - In Hiding

"Nikita!" Bang, bang, bang! "Nikita!"

Startled I opened my eyes and sat up. For a moment I wasn't sure where I was; none of my surroundings looked familiar, and it was dark. The blurry world around me slowly came into focus, and I could comprehend that there was a window in front of me; its curtains were drawn, letting in a very dim beam of light. Dust particles trickled down through the beam, floating and dancing around each other; it was mesmerizing.

Bang, bang, bang! I jumped again, and gripped the couch cushions tightly.

"Nikita! I know your home!" A familiar voice echoed, "Are you okay?" I leapt up off the couch and ran to my door still in a daze; stumbling into the wall as my blood rushed away from my brain blurring my vision again.

_Dang_, I thought, _I must have got up too fast_. I finally made it to my apartment entrance, and swung the door open to reveal Beverly Mash.

"Nikita! Oh my Gawd, what is going on with you!?" She shouted.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"What do I mean? You have been M.I.A. for the last three days! That's what I mean! What is going on with you?"

"Nothing is going on." I shrugged, stumbling over my words when it sank in, "Wha- Three days?"

"YES!" She exclaimed and pushed past me and into my apartment. "I saw you leave the diner THREE days ago. I looked you straight in the eye, waved, and you looked straight through me and kept walking! What is up with that!?"

I felt slightly dizzy for the third time that morning; or afternoon; _whenever it was_.

"Three days?" I fought hard with myself trying to piece together what happened since I left the diner. I could see Beverly throw her arms in the air and cross then tightly across her chest; an angry expression painted across for face. "I honestly don't remember the last three days, Beverly."

Her expression softened, "Really?" She began to look concerned. Beverly turned to study my apartment, seeing the clothes scattered on the floor and draped over the couch; there was used teacups on the coffee table and half melted candles scattered everywhere.

She held her hand and to her cheek as she continued to look around the room when she noticed the window. "Well, this is your problem." She huffed, as she marched over to the blinds and ripped them open. "You couldn't see outside!"

The light pierced my eyes like daggers; I held my arm over them and stumbled back, "Gah!" I groaned.

Beverly looked proud for a moment, no doubt feeling as though she had solved the worlds problems in just a split second, until she focused on the baseboards. I watched her smile fade as she studied them.

"Nikita, what's that?" She muttered, walking closer to the wall. I looked over to see what she was talking about. We both crouched down to see white powder tracing the base of my walls. I pinched some of the power, and sniffed it.

"Its salt," I said, "I must have traced my whole apartment with it." We both stood up, our eyes still fixated on the white line in front of us.

"But why?"

"I must have been trying to keep something out." I then noticed the various candles and gris-gris bags thrown about my living room. "I must have really been trying to keep something out."

I looked towards my kitchen and it hit me. The dark figure standing in my kitchen doorway. He attacked me the other night. My eyes followed the path he had taken; more images of that night kept flashing in my head the further I walked. I pushed open my bedroom door, and suddenly I remember feeling myself being pinned against the wall. The clown pushing up against me, and his menacing look of hunger burning in his eyes. I blinked and the vision was gone, but I could hear that blood curdling screech once again, envisioning his body exploding and covering my walls his carnage.

This vision was quickly followed by my memory of what happened after I left the diner.

* * *

I was walking back to the apartment when a balloon sprouted from the bush beside the door. Pretending not to see it, I quickly passed by it's shimmering reflection and entered the apartment building. The elevator doors began opening and closing revealing behind them bodies of people standing inside them; they moaned and groaned, reaching towards the doors like zombies. I staggered sideways and ran into the wall. I tore open the stairwell door and ran up the stairs as quick as I could. The ground began to rumble and shake. I grabbed the railing for balance as the staircase began to crumble as I ran for my life. I made it to my floor, but barley. The lights flickered in waves down the hall. I scrambled to get my keys out and I could hear a gurgling voice echoing behind me.

"You can't escape me." I turned to see a tall zombie rushing down the hall behind me. My eyes burned with tears, my body was shaking and I started to sob; I just had to get into my apartment.

The creature was close behind, but I made it though my door too quick for him to grab me. I ran to my box labeled with the star and dumped everything out of it. I pulled out a large tub of salt and ran it along my walls; my lights began to flicker. I scattered my candles in my living room and began chanting a protection spell as I lit some incense to calm my self down and began fabricating the gris-gris bags. My apartment walls began shaking in protest.

"Stay out!" I shouted, and tossed a gris-gris bag at the door. The lights burst and everything went black.

* * *

I gasped, and bent over as I threw up.

"Nikita!" Beverly ran to my side and grabbed my shoulders. I brushed her off and ran towards the front door, using the wall to keep me standing; my legs grew even weaker when I made it to my entrance way, I felt as though I might throw up again. The line of salt had been broken. At the base of the door where Beverly had walked in, was a scattered part of my the line. I fell to my knees and desperately tried to recreate it. The little particles of salt popped in and out of the carpet as my shaky hands scrapped along the ground.

"Nikita! Whats happening?"

"Don't break the line." I mumbled under my breath.

"What?"

"Don't break the line!" I sat up and stared at her. "_He _was here, Bev." She stared at me blanked faced. "_IT_ was here! In my apartment! That's what this is all about! I have to keep him out!"

"Nikita, two more kids have gone missing over the last three days. The Losers Club and I have had enough. We are going to figure out a way to stop him."

I stared at her I disbelief.

"We are meeting at Bills place this afternoon," She continued, "I figured you would want to come with me."

She stood there for a moment waiting for me to react, but I didn't. I was stuck thinking about _IT_. The look of his massive teeth that edged their way towards me the other night; how his hot breath melted my skin and how I saw zombies in the elevators; I felt as though everything I knew was coming to an end..._ How could I have suppressed that memory? And why did no one else hear me running?_ Everything that happened after the diner seemed so clear now, but none of it made sense.

"Anyway," Beverly announced as began to walk to the door, "just think about it. Sometimes help form others is a good thing." She handed me a piece of paper with an address on it and smiled and disappeared into the hallway as my door slowly closed behind her.

I sat on my couch and dropped my head in my hands. _What do I do?_ I though to myself, _I can't just hide in here and rot_.

I looked around my living room at the melted candles, gris-gris bags and empty tea cups. I decided to spend the rest of that morning cleaning, I washed all of the dished and opened all of the windows to vent the place out.

_Should I go to Bills place?_ I looked over to the paper that Beverly gave me and thought it through. _If I didn't go, what would happen?_ I pictured me stuck in this room forever, and decided to go.

But first, I had to get my act together and be brave for once; if a bunch of kids could do it, then so could I. Leaving my home meant bringing some reinforcements. I opened another one of my unpacked boxes and pulled out a vile of salt and a small bottle of water; each blessed by Madam Moora.

I then moved the salt line back from the door so that it wouldn't be tempered with every time my door glided over it; at least I knew _this_ space was safe. I applied more vanilla liquid and looked in the mirror; I still had the talisman around my neck and I gripped it tight in my hand as marched out the front door, leaving my sanctuary behind.


	7. Chapter 7 - An Unexpected Show

Chapter 7 - An Unexpected Show

I locked eyes on the diner feeling excruciatingly guilty; I knew I had to go back in there and explain my absence, but I was afraid to. I pushed through the swigging doors and made my way to the counter where Rosie was standing with a very unimpressed look on her face; her long red fingernails tapped irritably on the counter top.

"You're three days late." She grumbled.

"I am so sorry Rosie, it will never happen again." I watched her face for any sign of forgiveness, but no luck. She has obviously dealt with this kind of behaviour before. I had to come up with something big, to earn my place back here, "I have been really sick. SO sick that I can't even remember the last few days." I could see a flicker of change in her eyes and she looked me up and down crossing her arms. She pursed her lips tightly together and let out a smack sound.

"Alright Doll, I will give you this one. Ya do look quite worn out, so I will tell ya this." She leaned in close as if she was about to tell me a secret, "I will give you the next three days to rest, and figure out what ever you got going on with ya," she waved a judgmental finger at me before preceding, "BUT when ya get back, no more funny business, Kapiesh?" I nodded my head quickly, shocked about how terribly understanding she was. "Good, now skidadle! I don't want to see ya till you're all better." And with that, she spun on her heels and turned to continue serving customers.

I turned and ran out of there, I ran so quick that I could barely feel my legs; the relief of still having a job was exquisite. I pulled the paper, that Beverly gave me earlier, out of my pocket to study the address written on it. I looked up at the unfamiliar town in front of me and sighed.

"Oh, this is going to take forever." I mumbled.

* * *

After an hour or so of walking and asking random people directions, I stumbled across a house with a bunch of bikes piled on its lawn. I slowly approached its driveway; clutching tight to the paper that guided me there.

Just inside the garage at the far end of the driveway was the sound of a bunch of squabbling voices, all of which sounded familiar.

"Nikita! You came!" Beverly Marsh came charging out of the darkened garage and gave me a huge hug. I hugged her back, but couldn't shake the feeling of a couple unwelcome stares.

"I thought we were the lucky seven," Richie piped up as he emerged from the garage, "not the unlucky eight! haha"

"Beep, beep, Richie" A few of the others mumbled in quiet staggered attempts of making their true feelings less obvious.

"Yea, R-Richie, nn-no one needs your nnegativit-ty here." Bill ordered. "Besides, w-we could use all the help, wee can g-gget."

Beverly pulled me into the garage as they shut the door, turned off the practically useless dim light, and pulled the blinds; which made the biggest difference at this time of day. Everyone was there; Beverly, Bill, Ben, Eddie, Richie, Stan, Mike and myself. Richie as right, eight was an unlucky number when you're aiming for seven.

The kids gathered around a projector as Bill started by pulling up an overlay of the sewer system. He pointed out that the landmarks and locations on it that were all connected to each other through the pipes and drains; where is brother, Georgie, went missing, the Ironworks (where the big explosion happened killing many children) and the Black Spot (where a handful of people died in a burnt down bar). I wasn't too sure what they all had to do with each other, but the faces on the rest of the kids looked as though they were just given another fitting piece of their puzzle. I decided not to ask anything.

The tension in the room grew when Bill pointed out the Well House, everyone shifted in their seats, and Eddie needed to take a drag of his puffer.

"It's in the house on Neibolt Street." Stanley pointed out, his face remained unchanged as if trying to keep it together.

"You mean the creepy ass house were the hobos and junkies like to sleep?" Richie piped up again.

"I hate that place," Beverly stated, "it always feels like it's watching me." She rubbed her arm nervously, and looked helplessly towards Bill.

"That's where I saw IT." Eddie whinned, "That's where I saw the clown."

I could feel my skin hair prickle up like goose flesh all over my body. The acid in my stomach bubbled and turned, I had to say something, but had to swallow the lump in my throat first.

"Clown?" I gasped. The flash back of the other days came rushing back to me. I regretted coming here, _I am not brave like these kids! Who am I kidding here?_

"T-that's where IT lives." Bill continued.

"I can't imagine anything ever wanting to live there." Stan said. Eddie jumped out of his seat and walked in front of the projection wall.

"Can we stop talking about this!? I-I can barely breath! THIS IS SUMMER! WE'RE KIDS! I CAN BARLEY BREATH-IMAHAVING AFUCKING ASTHMA ATTACK!?" He took in a gasping breath and turned to the wall to tear down the poster, "I AM NOT DOING THIS!"

"What the hell?" Bill shouted, "Put the map back!"

Eddie shook his head uncontrollably as the projector buzzed and rotated, changing the slide by its self. Various pictures of Bill and his family flashed on the wall.

"What happened?" Bill asked as the others made unclear remarks under their breaths. Each of us started to stand and shift, feeling extremely uneasy about what was happening. The projector took an extended few seconds of one particular picture of Bills family, and it began to zoom in on Georgie.

"Georgie." Bill whispered. We all stood there frozen in time, just as the image of Georgie was. The projector buzzed and rotated faster and faster, changing its focus to the lady in the white dress, who I only assumed was Bills mother, but the fear in Bills eyes said other wise. The image began to move and the ladies hair began to blow in the wind and eventually pulled back enough for us to see a clowns face half smiling under it. We all gasped and reached for each other backing away quickly. Not noticing everyone else backing away, Richie stood a little ahead of the group.

"THAT THE FUCK IS THAT!?" He cried, realizing he was the only one in front and hustled back to join the rest of us. "WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT!?" He repeated, now clawing at Eddie.

"I DON'T FUCKING KNOW!" Eddie spat back. It was clear now, it was _IT_!

"TURN IT OFF!" Beverly shouted, "TURN IT OFF!"

We all joined her in our own way, begging for someone to turn off the machine. But no one did. We all were panicking and stuttered over our words. I saw Mike step forward and kicked the projector off of its mount; it hit the ground with a loud crash and the screen went white for a split second before flicking again to an image that looked like the clown had tripped. The image was blurry and out of focus. It flicked again. The clown as still there, unchanged, it flicked again. The same image. It flicked several times in a row with the image unchanged, until it paused for the an extra few seconds; no clown. The projector light went out and the entire room went black.

The projector buzzed and rotated in the dark. The light came back on, only this time accompanied by horrible laughter and a grotesque figure of the clown and his monstrous teeth. He was no longer part of the image, he was now crawling into the garage through the light on the wall. The projector buzzed again, he grew larger as he pulled his way towards us.

I screamed, sending every one in separate directions. The giant clown crawled along the ground still laughing in a fit of pure delight. He swiped at the shadows that ran past him, and charged towards Beverly. He looked her dead in the eye before turning to me. I could see a flash of anger deep in his eyes, as his smile turned into pure hate.

I felt a wave of cold sweat splash over my body, and I found myself gasping for air. He began to smile once more, and I crawled backwards desperately trying to get away. I reached for my talisman and gripped it tight. He was above me now; his smile dissolving, and his jaws peeling back in a roar. He dropped down towards me as a light from my left broke through the darkness. It blinded me, forcing me to close my eyes tight.

When I opened them, the clown was gone.

Everyone stood there panting for a moment, as Beverly touched Ben's shoulder and slipped past him to seek comfort in Bills arms. Through my shock, I could feel the poor kids disappointment and I felt bad for him.

"IT saw us," Eddie panted, "IT saw us, and _IT_ knows where we are!"

Bill mumbled to himself and walked into the sun light.

"S-so lets go." He said.

I raised my head up in alarm, and pulled my self up to stand with the group.

"Go?" Ben interrupted, "Go where?"

"Neibolt, t-tthat's where G-Georgie is."

"After that?" Stan squeaked and gestured towards the garage.

"Yea, its summer," Eddie added, "we should be outside -"

"If you say its summer one more ff-ffucking time." Bill stood there shaking with what I mistook as fear earlier, but it was anger. His eyes darted around the group looking each one of us in the eyes before turning and grabbing his bike.

"Bill!" Beverly called, "WAIT!" But it was too late. Bill had already mounted his bike and was down the road. Still in shock we all stood there, momentary frozen. Beverly broke free of it and grabbed her bike. "Come on! We have to follow him!" She called back to the rest of us. One by one each of the kids grabbed their bikes and sped off after Bill.

I could only watch as the seven of them disappeared down the street and around the corner. _The Lucky seven_, I thought to myself, _its people like those kids who truly make a difference in this world. And I have no place with them.._

I was about to head back to my apartment when the wind picked up slightly, and I found myself gravitated to the same place that the kids were headed to, the house on Neibolt Street.


	8. Chapter 8 - The House on Neibolt Street

Chapter 8 - The House on Neibolt Street

The walk felt like a dream; hazy and unclear. I am not sure how long it took me to get to the house, nor am I sure how I knew where it was, but it was clear which house it was when I got there.

It was a run down old building with an old run broken fence. The grass appeared to have never been cut, and there was a very obvious pile of children's bikes in front of the building. I stood at the gate and stared down the cracked and mossy pathway to the front door. An image of how beautiful this house was flashed across my eyes. _Someone must have loved this place at one point in its life_. But now it was desolate, unloved, and creepy.

Besides the pile of bikes on the street, I never would have guessed that the kids were inside the house; and against my better judgment, I took my first step onto the abandoned property.

The door creaked and groaned in agony as I pushed it open, the house smelt of death, and the inside of the house was just as bad as the outside, full of cobwebs, dust, leaves and a few ancient pieces of furniture. The breeze whistled through the old windows and pushed a crumpled piece of paper against my foot. I picked it up and unfolded it to see it was a missing kid poster. It read,

_Police Department City of Derry_

_MISSING_

_Richie Tozier_

_13 years old_

_LAST SEEN JULY 4th. _

"Help." A weak voice whispered from upstairs. I looked up alarmed.

"Hello?" I placed the paper down, and hustled over to the stairs. "Guys? Is that you?"

"Nikita?" The voice replied breaking into a wet cough, "You came for us?" The voice sounded more familiar now.

"Beverly? What happened?" I stepped up the first few steps and stretched my neck out as far as I could to see upstairs without actually going up there. Hearing Beverly's voice put me more at ease, but I couldn't shake the fear I felt inside.

"He got to us, Nikita, we need your help."

"Hold on, I'm coming." I kept walking up the stairs, my legs shaking. "Where are you?" This time there was no answer. "Beverly?"

"We are here."

I made it to top of the stairs onto a landing; more stairs continued up but I was already as deep as I wanted to be in this creepy house. I could hear more coughing; it sounded like she was spiting up something thick and wet. A shadow darted across the light on the floor. "Beverly?" I ran towards the movement. _Maybe if I got to her quicker, we can get out of here quicker_, I thought.

I could see Beverly at the end of the hall in what I would assume was a bedroom with the door half closed; she turned and ran around the corner. "Beverly! Stop! Wait up! Where is everyone else?" I ran to the door, and pushed it fully open; it creaked in agony.

Beverly was standing with her back to me in the corner crying, her sobs echoed in the room. A rush of relief waved over me, "Beverly, oh thank gawd." I muttered and walked towards her. "Come one lets go. Let's get the heck out of here. This place is giving me the creeps. Where did everyone else go? I saw their bikes outside-"

Her sobs stopped, and the house creaked alone in the silence. My heart sank to my stomach.

"Beverly?"

"They all float now." She giggled. The corner where she stood was dark, and it almost seemed like the rest of the room was getting dimmer the longer I stood there.

"W-what?" I whispered under my breath, and staggered backwards.

"They all float," She continued, slowly turning to me. She looked as though she had been dragged face down in the dirt, her dress was tattered and torn, and her eyes, they were gone. In their place was dark hollow caverns surrounded by loose skin. Blood as dark as tar oozed out of them, her voice sounded more angry as she began to shout, "THEY ALL FLOAT!" She took a falling step towards me, "THEY ALL FFLLOOAAA-" Her jaw fell open and kept stretching unnaturally lower, more black blood pored out of her mouth.

I gasped and ran back to the door, but it slammed shut.

"AAAAAAAAT" She continued before breaking into deep laughter, spitting blood all over the front of her dress and on the floor. Her horrible voice was pierced my at my nerves with every wave of laughter and screeching. She robotically staggered towards me again, her hands stretched down at her side. I heard a crack as she froze. Her bones then began to push under her skin and her limbs grew longer and thinner as her flesh pulled thin.

I screamed, and ran to the next door in the room. Beverly's body was now bent over, hitting the ceiling as her grotesque limbs grew longer. She got down on all fours and darted towards me like a spider; her face still growing longer, and her skin was now hanging off her skull like a wet rag. Still screaming, I grabbed the door knob. The creature slammed its long twisted hand on the door as I tried to pull it open. BANG!

I turned to the beast, my entire body was shaking and everything felt numb. Tears burned my eyes and sweet beaded off of my forehead. I reached in my pocket and the creature screeched again; blood splattered on the wall in front of it. I gabbed the bottle of blessed water, and splashed it on the creature.

This time it screamed, not in delight, but in pain. It stumbled backwards and held its hands over the sizzling water on its skin. It smoked and bubbled where the water had touched, instantly blistering and bursting with infection. As it writhed in pain, I twisted the door knob and left the beast behind, watching it roll on the floor in pain.

I slammed the door behind me. The new room was dark and full of clown figurines, all of them had their heads turned towards a boy across the room from me. He stood in front of, what looked like, a coffin. He closed the lid, but it immediately bust open. The clown from earlier sprung out, screaming, and landed on the, once again, closed casket lid. The boy gasped, and the clown raised its head slowly, looking oddly delighted. He raised his large gloved hand and pinched his thumb and pointer finger together a couple times.

"Beep, beep, Richie" He said, his voice slightly child like with excitement. He paused for a moment before screaming and lunging at Richie.

Richie screamed back and turned to me. We bumped into each other, both surprised, but neither of us hesitated to open the door. We burst out of it and slammed it behind us. Richie panted and coughed looking over at me.

"Nikita!?"

Just then Bill grabbed both of us, "Lets get out of here!"

The three of paused as we heard bubbling laughter on the other side of the room. There was a mattress on the floor that began moving. A child's head pushed its way through the centre of the fabric and looked right at us.

"Wanna play loogie?" It said before vomiting up the same black, tar like, blood from earlier. The liquid started oozing from under the mattress. The kid began shaking uncontrollably and laughing; then sunk down into the mattress once again. More blood flowed out, and rolled towards us. It looked hot as lava, burning the wood and dead leaves under it; smoking as it crawled towards us.

We backed up, and turned to run, but the door to the hallway had turned into three. Each one read, _"Not scary at all, scary and very scary."_ The choice was obvious, we glanced at each other and ran to the door that said, _"Not scary at all."_

The boys yanked it open, but it was completely dark.

"Where's my shoe?" A girl whispered. Bill reached forward for the light string; when he pulled it, we saw a girl hanging my her wrists. She was cut in half and screaming, pulling her half body back and forth; her bloody, torn shirt waving beneath her. We all screamed and backed away as Richie slammed it shut.

"WHERE THE FUCK WERE HER LEGS!?" Richie screamed, "HOLY SHIT, HOLY SHIT!"

We turned back to the blood lava creeping towards us. I pulled out my small bottle of blessed water and splashed some of the hot liquid. TZZZ. TZZZ. Steam rose from the spots that I splashed, but nothing more; it continued to make it was way towards us, it didn't slow it down at all. Bill slammed Richie against the door.

"T-this isn't real." He began, "Remember the missing kid poster? That wasn't real, so this isn't real."

"WHat?" I shouted. "How is this not real!? Look at it!" Bill looked like he was about to speak again, but I didn't give him a second to start. "Lets go!" I shouted before ripping open the next door,_ "scary"_; the hall was dark, and I turned to the boys. Just then something grabbed my leg and dragged me in. Before Bill and Richie could follow me, the door slammed shut.

The room was black and humid; my breathing was shaky and rapid, and I reached my arms forward to find the wall. My hand touched something wet and spongey, it was warm and almost felt like flesh. I quickly pulled my hand away and looked down at it; my eyes were adjusting to the light really slow but I could see the faint outline of my hand, and some sort of dark liquid dripped off my fingers. I cringed in disgust, and wiped it on my pants. When I looked up I could see a light just ahead. I shuffled towards it; the light was blinding against the pure darkness.

The ground began to crack just ahead of me, and I stopped walking. I turned back to head to the door, _hopeful the boys are still there_. Two little lights, like eyes, stared me from the darkness. I could hear kids screaming behind me, coming from the light, but my eyes were frozen on the other eyes that were locked on me. They came closer. I turned to run towards the light again, but the ground had now broke, and I was teetering on the edge of the broken hard wood floor. The light filled the room; the walls were red, dripping in blood and pulsating with wounded flesh. I gasped, unsure if I was more afraid to fall, or to stay in the room.

I turned back to regain my balance, but the floor busted underneath me, and I began to fall. I gasped again, and reached my hand forward to grab the edge of the floor in front of me, but it was too late, felt my fingers glide past the wood, and I felt like this was the end.

Just then something grabbed my wrist. A large white gloved hand, with a firm yet soft grip, grabbed my wrist and yanked me up. I flew through the air and landed on the unbroken part of floor, and rolled on my back to see my saviour.

I was petrified to see the clown again, standing close to the edge slightly hunched over, but strong. His eyes were down as if contemplating something. He had a large string of drool hanging from his lip, and I could hear slight growling under his breath.

We both froze there, as still as statues for a moment. His eyes followed the floor, they traced up my body and then met mine; they were just as yellow as I remembered them before. He lurched forward, lowering himself to the ground, at my feet. He then slowly crawled over me.

There was something different about this interaction, something slightly more in control. I could see chaos behind his eyes, but his body was hesitant. I wanted to run. I wanted to shove him off of me and find the way out of this messed up house, but I didn't. Instead I let him get close to me. The warmth of his body was almost comforting, but it didn't settle my fear of him. I laid there, like a scared rabbit barely even sure if I was still breathing.

His face was close to my neck now, and he drew in a deep breath and closed his eyes. He looked almost intoxicated for a moment before opening them again. He looked back into my eyes, this time they appeared more predatory.

I pushed my hands on his chest to get him off, but he broke out in laughter and grabbed my wrists. My fear of him immediately sky rocketed. He pinned my wrists down on the ground above my head with one hand, and wiped some of the '_out of control'_ drool off of his lip. He giggled deep in his throat and leaned in close to my neck once more, reaching for my talisman.

A muffled voice in the next room broke his concentration, "Thank fuck." It was Richie.

More screaming from down stairs echoed from the hole in the floor, and the clown looked to the side; his eyes rolled upwards as if they were seeing something beyond what I could. He punched the ground beside me breaking some of the floor boards, and I flinched; I curled up in a ball and rolled to my side away from his fist.

I looked up, but he was gone. The hallway was normal and there was no hole in the floor. I sat up quickly to hear more voices from down stairs.

"This isn't real enough for you, Billy?" A slightly unfamiliar voice mocked. I ran to the stairs. "I'm not real enough for you?" The voice sounded more clear.

"Holy shit." Richie blurted. Hearing his voice made me feel so relieved. I was so close to meeting back up with them, and even better, they were close to the front door and our freedom from this mess. The unfamiliar voice began giggling; a giggle that I now recognized; the clown.

"It was real enough for Georgie!" he continued.

I made it to the bottom of the stairs just in time to see the clown burst into uncontrolled laughter, and lunge at Bill and Richie across the room, leaving Eddie on the ground behind him.

Beverly burst in from the front door and stabbed him in the eye with an iron rod. The clown froze, and the others followed her in behind her, one by one; Ben, Mike and Stan.

Right away the entire group of kids gathered around their screaming friend, Eddie, who appeared to have a broken arm. I too tried to run to his aid, but stopped in my tracks when the clown turned to look at the kids.

The iron rod was sticking out the side of his jaw, and his mouth had become a half decayed smile of sharp teeth. He staggered towards the group, and growled. Everyone screamed louder as the clown approached. His hands turned into claws as they tore through his gloves. He lunged forward and yelled, growling and laughing at the same time. Everyone flinched, and Beverly turned to look away, but her eyes were still glued to him.

The clown twisted and slashed Ben's stomach, his shirt tore and blood pored out. Ben fell backwards as the clown twisted back to look at everyone once more.

The clown looked as though he struggled to stand; his breathing became more strained, and he staggered backwards. He lifted on hand and dipped lower in his step, almost as if to bow at the end of a performance. He looked at me and dropped his head, before fading back into the doorway behind him. _It was a bow_, I thought to myself.

"Don't let him get away!" Bill said as he stood up strait and perused the injured clown, before disappearing into the same doorway. I turned to the others. They were all shouting at each other, but I couldn't focus on what they were saying. My mind was clouded in thought; still in shock. _What just happened?_ My mind was spinning.

Once Bill returned the group, they all grabbed Eddie and Ben, and then ran out to the street. I followed, but my legs felt weak, like I had weights tied to my ankles; as if my body did not want to leave the house.

I eventually made it outside to see the kids put Eddie in one of their baskets, and started peddling away as quick as they could. Beverly paused before following the others, and turned to me.

"Nikita, are you okay?" I looked up at her, still bewildered and nodded my head. "Good, can you take Eddies bike back to my place? I will be there as soon as I can." And with that, she disappeared down the street.

This was the second time I was left behind that day. I had had enough. _I can't do this any more_. I looked up at the old house, and thought back to the clown and how he caught me as I fell. _Was that on purpose? Did he mean to save me? Or did he just want to kill me himself?_

I picked up Eddies bike and began walking it back home.


	9. Chapter 9 - A Dream to Remember

Chapter 9 - A Dream to Remember 

I finally made it back the apartment building completely lost in thought; Eddies bike trailing beside me. I could vaguely hear the_ tik tik tik_ of the cards he had taped to its back tire as I walked down the street, but I didn't care. I felt so numb; so immersed in what had happened in the house on Neibolt Street, that I wasn't even sure if I had looked both ways before walking out in to traffic on my way back.

The sky grew darker with grey clouds rolled in making the air feel heavy with rain. I opened the main door to the apartment building, as the cloud rumbled with thunder, and looked up at the _'Out of Order'_ sign on the elevator. I stood there for a moment, seeing flashes of the zombies that were there before. Their tattered clothes, aged and torn, hanging off of their decaying bodies. I blinked hard and stared at the floor, walking briskly to the stairs; my shaky hands lifted Eddies bike as I made my way up to my floor.

I got to my door where the same flickering hall light buzzed, and reached for my keys in my pocket, but before I could find them a gruff voice shocked me, and all of my senses sky rocketed.

"You," the man said, "have you seen my Bevy?"

I paused and looked over to Beverly's door where her father stood smoking a cigarette; his arms crossed over his chest and his legs were slightly crossed too as he leaned on the door frame in the hallway.

He was still in his work cloths, old grey janitor coveralls with his name embroidered on the left side of his chest. The top of it was unbuttoned revealing his stained, _what I could only imagine what used to be_, white wife beater. He took a good long drag of his cigarette before continuing to speak.

"You're the one that hangs out with my daughter. You must know where she is." He stared me down for another moment. He has never spoke to me before and, quite frankly, I was afraid of him. Judging by the marks he left on Beverly, he was not a very kind man. "She had better not be off with _them_.." He hesitated in disgust, "_boys_." I watched his face curl and wrinkle, his inner thoughts showing through his facial movements. "You know what they are like.. _Boys_.. They only have one thing on their mind. And I must - I must keep Bevy safe from them. Don't want them _messin'_ with _her_.." He paused. For a moment, I don't believe he was talking to me. His eyes were far away, looking past me and down the hall. He blinked and slowly rolled his eyes back to me, just remembering that I was still standing there. He jutted out his jaw and looked me up and down tilting his head back lightly, letting out a heavy sigh.

He took a quick puff of his cigarette before quickly disappearing into his dark apartment and slamming the door behind him. I watched his door for a few seconds after he left, staring at the peek hole under his room number. _I wonder if he is watching my trough that_.. I shivered, as I found my keys and frantically unlocked my door and ran inside.

I leaned Eddies bike on the wall by my door and made sure that I locked the door tight before I stepped into my sanctuary. I wandered around my apartment lighting candles and replacing old ones. I started the heating water for some tea and headed to the bathroom. I sat down on the edge of the tub and ran my fingers through my hair and let out a big sigh of relief.

Home felt safe; _for now anyway_. The salt lines were untouched, the candles are lit and the gris-gris bags were exactly where I had put them when I left. I stayed silent as I lit the incense on the small table beside the tub; watermelon scent. I made my tea in the kitchen and got undressed once I was back in the bathroom.

I closed the door behind me and held the talisman tight in my hand; I kept it on, still slightly paranoid, but assuring myself that this is my one safe place in this town. I took the incense and twirled its smoke in a star formation over the tub; I placed it between my hands for a moment of silence before setting it down on its stand. I slid myself down in to the water; I watched it steam as my skin tingled as I fully submersed myself. When I sat up and leaned back, my eyes stayed closed as I drew in a deep breath; as I let it out I felt my body sink deeper into the hot water, hearing nothing but a slight drip from the faucet at my feet.

_I am safe here_, I whispered to myself internally.

* * *

It was only a matter of seconds before I found myself lost in a dream; swimming in the ocean, not on its surface but under it, deep enough to see where the suns reach ended just below me.

The water around me looked as though it would be ice cold, but it was not. It was very strange that the ocean was so warm, but I paid no mind, feeling very sure that this was just a dream. I just kept swimming, enjoying the endless shades of blue that surrounded me; feeling beautiful in the yellow bikini that I was suddenly wearing. The sun danced around as the surface above me shifted and waved. _Still safe_.

I relaxed myself, allowing my body to float in the water. I could feel the slight pull from the waves above, but it was only slight. I watched the talisman float around my neck, then looked down into the endless dark blue under me, studying the little particles of light that drifted down to it.

Just them I saw a shadow. It moved quick. I waved my arms to make to make me float more upright, and continued to look down towards the darkness. I squinted, beginning to feel uneasy. I kicked my legs slightly to head to the surface.

I felt a rumble. What ever that was it was not good. I swam harder, and looked down again. A large shape was emerging from the depths below. The water began to feel colder as I swam towards the surface. The shape got clearer as it gained speed on me; I was now panicking. Swimming as hard as I could to get away. The shape was a giant whale, only it had sharp features and many rows of razor sharp teeth like a shark. I kicked harder, but it was approaching fast.

I caught a flash out of the corner of my eye, _red_. I hesitated, and turned to see what it was; it was a red balloon. _What the? _I thought. It floated up past me at an alarming rate. I looked back down to the shark toothed whale surrounding me with its mouth and its throat was a never ending tunnel down to total darkness; but just before it could close its blood thirsty jaws around me, something hit me, and I was pushed to safety; I shut my eyes tight as I could.

The water around me thrashed and waved violently for a moment before calming down again. When I opened my eyes the whale was gone, but I was holding someone, and they were holding me. I pushed my self away the person, and I was shocked to see who it was. It was that clown again.

The two of us floated together in the blue void. His costume waved around him and his orange hair weightlessly danced around his head, but oddly it still kept its shape. He was not threatening, he was only observing.

_He saved me, again_. His face was soft and his eyes where blue. His white skin was bright and glistened in the ocean water. I looked closer at his face; at this moment his makeup didn't look as cracked as it did before, it looked kind of soft, and part of me wanted to reach out and touch it. His neck rifle teased his chin and swayed in the current as the red pom poms on this suit danced along his torso, the other parts of his costume followed the movement as well.

For a moment, it felt very peaceful until he slowly began to smile. At first it looked innocent and unthreatening, but it eventually morphed into a sick and twisted grin. The more he smiled the more discomfort I felt.

My throat itched at first, but then it grew to a squeeze. I didn't understand, I reached for my throat and felt nothing putting pressure on it, but the longer I looked at him, the more pressure I felt. The clown continued to smile, it was beginning to pass the range of a normal human smile, and I began to choke even more; sucking in water with every gasp. I desperately reached around me, kicking my legs and waving my arms to swim up to the surface to where I could breath again, but something held me down. The clown was still floating in front of me, but he wasn't touching me; he only smiled, his sharp teeth shimmered in the water.

I felt like I was going to die, I tried to scream but more air escaped my lunges and burst out of my mouth like an underwater volcano. I sucked in again, the water was suffocating me.

* * *

I reached my hands up and gripped the sides of the tub, and yanked my body out of the water. I coughed and choked, vomiting up water over the edge of the tub and on to the floor. Shaking, and barely breathing I looked around the room.

_It was just a dream_, I convinced myself, _I must have fallen asleep._

I looked over to my stone cold tea beside the tub, and then over to the burnt out incense on the counter. I held myself there panting. _I almost drowned._ I reflected on what jus happened. _The clown is now in my dreams?_

"I have to stop this." I spat.

I pulled my cold body out of the water and wrapped myself in a towel, then headed to one of the unpacked boxes that were on the kitchen table. I pulled out a small cylindrical container and unscrewed its lid. I stomped to my bedroom and dipped my fingers in the black clay-like paint.

I chanted under my breath and drew anti-dream symbols around the room. When I was done, I laid on the bed and continued to think about the clown.

I couldn't remember the last time I was so tired, so drained, so scared. There was a feeling in my stomach that wouldn't go away; a sick and tingling feeling right under my gut.

_What should I do? _I reached for the talisman that still hung off of my neck. I thought back to New Orleans. _Maybe I should head back, I don't belong here. I have to get away. _I continued to plot out a new plan for myself as I wrapped myself tight under the blankets, and passed out from exhaustion.

* * *

…

Authors Note:

A little window into Nikita's frame of mind, and the meaning of her dream. Dreams are very important to her; it delivers an untainted understanding of what is happening inside of ones head.

Nikita knows that the calm blueness of the ocean represented her clarity of mind at that moment. She was purging herself of the fear of _IT_, and knew her dream was a safe place. The colour of her bikini, yellow, is a very important spiritual colour. It is the colour of the sun, which is a symbol of peace and harmony. She feels like her peace of mind in this moment is giving her the ability to over come obstacles in her future.

But when Nikita becomes more fearful, the water became cold, revealing that she was not only asleep in the tub too long, but that she is beginning to feel overwhelmed with her emotions as she longs to get to the _surface_.

She is saved by the clown, obviously reflecting what had happened in the house on Neibolt Street earlier, but he doesn't threaten her right away. This is the first time she gets to observe him, and just see what he looks like when he is not cloaked in darkness. Which leads to the final aspect go her dream; drowning.

As she watches him, he starts to smile. Every time she has come into contact with him, he has found humour in her suffering. Normally caused my something that he is doing, but this time, he was not the cause of her problem, he only watched. Drowning is a symbol of being overwhelmed by difficult emotions and anxieties. Looking at the clown suddenly made her question what he was/who he was. Him saving her has added a whole new confusion to her life, an it is suffocating her.

Nikita's deep understanding of the symbolism of this dream makes her fearful of how she feels towards him, making her pause and reflect on the possibility that, there maybe more to him than just a killer monster. She decides to cast these thoughts out; things are much easier to ignore when you don't have your subconscious feeding you imagination, and trying to show you how you truly feel.


	10. Chapter 10 - Leaving Town

Chapter 10 - Leaving Town

The moment my eyes opened the following morning, I darted to the living room to grab my book bag and shoved everything that I would need to leave town. Derry was quickly becoming a nightmare, and I wanted no part in it. Images of the past events flashed in my head as I shoved a handful of clothes into my bag and ran back to the couch, grabbing a candle or two on my way by. The final thing I needed was my little wooden box that held my vanilla liquid inside. Once I found it, I applied another X on my chest and I shoved it deep in my bag, then buckled down the top flap.

I hesitated once I grabbed the door knob; out of breath, I paused to observe the space I had started calling my home; studying the gris-gris bags, candles, and tea cups that I had once displayed proudly.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, "you were supposed to be my home, my sanctuary. My new start," I looked down at the ground to observe the salt line that I had used for protection. "But I can't stay here. Not after what I've seen."

My hands were shaking, they shook so much over the last week that it had almost become normal. Thinking back, I couldn't even remember the last time that I had eaten a real meal; my hip bones began poking out from under my skin, and I looked pale and sick. Something about this town was draining me; consuming me. And I was pretty sure it was all that clowns doing. If I left this town, maybe the fear would stop and I would be able to move on with my life. I drew in a deep breath, threw my book bag over my shoulder and charged though the door and into the desolate hallway.

Immediately I was stopped, running into my elderly land lady, Mrs. Bocswell. We both went crashing to the ground as I tried to cushion her fall.

"Oh! Mrs. Bocswell! I AM SO Sorry! I didn't mean to - "

"WHAT on earth do you think you're doing child!?" She gasped, half coughing from the shock.

"Mrs. Bocswell, I - "

"No, no!" Her voice suddenly turned more stern, "I had higher expectations of you, young Jones. Bursting into the hallway like _that_?"

I helped raise her to her feet as I broke out into a nervous sweat. I hated upsetting people, and Mrs. Bocswell was so old and nice, and I felt so much guilt for knocking her over. My stomach twisted inside of me as she ranted. I made one more attempt to plead my case.

"I -"

"And just where do you think you are going in such a hurry?" She scoffed, shuffling away from my me, as she brushed my hands off of her and looked me up and down, fixing her glasses.

"I-I am just leaving town for a little bit." My response didn't seem to sit with her too well. I watched her face pinch together in distrust as I continued. "I won't be gone long, Mrs. Bocswell, I promise." I flashed her a nervous smile and waved my hand as I turned towards the stairwell.

"Don't leave in such a hurry, dear." She called after me, "You wouldn't want to miss the carnival this weekend." Something in her voice changed in that last statement, her voice was almost a bit gruff. It made me freeze at the doorway, and swallow hard.

I slowly looked back at her, unsure of what I would see at the end of the hallway. My eyes followed the worn out and stained, old carpet up to where she was standing in front of my door, where the hall light still flickered and buzzed.

To my surprise, Mrs. Bocswell stood there looking perfectly normal. Her hands were folded politely in front of her chest and her sincere facial expression glowed with a warm embrace. The light flickered again as she tilted her head, and smiled. The moment her lips parted, dark blood poured out from her mouth.

I jumped and gasped, as I shoved the door open and ran down the stairs. I did not look back. _That poor old woman_, I thought, _he got to her_. Tears burned in my eyes as I made it to the main floor, running past people that looked at me like I was crazy. My pace slowed as I noticed them watching me with suspicious glares, _I must keep calm or people will think that I am out of my mind_.

My speed changed, but my eyes did not, they darted around trying to stay alert incase _he_ showed up again. I clutched my bag strap tight and continued my way to the bus stop across the street and to my relief, a bus was parked there and ready to go. I waved my hand at it and jumped the curb, jogging to get to its open door before anything else happened.

A wave of relief washed over me as I stepped up into the bus. I scooted to the very back, but just before I could take my seat something out of the window caught my eye; Beverly. She stood on the street beside the bus, half mounted on her bike, her eyes glistened with confusion and hurt. We stared at each other till the bus breaks squeaked and lurched forward. I tried to give her the best explanation I could though our eye contact, but she didn't understand. I put my hand on the window and spoke the only words that I hoped she could hear,

"I can't."

Beverly's eyebrows dropped into a scowl as the bus pulled away and disappeared around the corner. Tears began tracing my cheeks as I hugged myself tight and sat down, trying to avoid eye contact with anyone else on the bus. I used my sleeve to dry my face, then stared out the window.

I watched the town of Derry pass by the window as the bus drove down its streets. The small businesses and unsuspecting people that walked on the sidewalks in front of them, the peaceful parks and happy bundles of children that played together in the grass.

I looked at the light posts and newspaper boxes too, noticing just how many missing signs were plastered on them. All of the people here had no idea what was happening in their town. It was almost like an illness, a tumour that silently spread and made it's way into the organs of an innocent child; consuming and warping its way into a comfortable existence, sucking the life from its host. It was wrong on so many levels, and the Losers club were the only ones who could see it happening. I hated myself for being so afraid. _Beverly and her friends can fix it_, I told myself. But the image of her standing outside of the bus, and the disappointment in her eyes hummed in my head like and old tube TV; its sound deafening, yet not existent.

Then another thought interrupted the image of Beverly. The feeling of the clowns large gloved hand grabbing me as I fell, catching me, and then throwing me to safety. I remembered my dream, when we floated in the ocean together in silence; and the calmness I felt in both of those situations. The idea of the possibility of there being something more to him pierced my stomach like a needle; the very concept of that was absurd and I did my best to cast it aside.

I looked out the window to search for something else to think about. The buildings were fewer now; I could see more trees than sidewalks, which meant I was nearing the edge of Derry. _Soon I will be out of this god damn town for good_.

I looked to the floor, feeling something under my shoe. I slid my foot aside and picked up a chunk of torn cloth that was tucked underneath it. The colour looked familiar, but I couldn't quite remember where I knew it from. Squinting at it, I sat back in my seat and tilted my read.

My body suddenly became consumed by a deep sick feeling; I felt faint and sat up as I grabbed the chair back in front of me. _This was mine_, I thought, _this is the piece of my clothes that his hand dragged away into the forest my first day here_.

I stood up quickly as my eyes darted to the head of the bus, but instead of seeing the mostly empty seats in broad day light, the bus was completely empty and dark. It looked as though the bus had been abandoned in the forest for years; grey and weathered. There were bits of burnt paper that floated in the air and streams of moonlight eerily glowing through the broken windows.

I turned to the isle to get out of the bus, but I only turned to look directly in to the eyes of the clown. My body immediately grew weak with fear and I stumbled back; petrified and unable to move.

The clown was in a squatted positing on top of the seat beside me, his forearms resting on his knees leaving his hands to dangle. There was a creepy curiosity flickering in his eyes as he smiled and cocked his head to the side a little.

"Where ya going, Niks?" His voice cracked as if he hadn't spoken for a long time.

I couldn't answer, all of the thoughts and images of him flashed in my head and I wasn't sure which emotion I should react with, or how I would even answer his question.

"Oooooh.. You wouldn't be leaving ol' Pennywise in this town alone would you?" He teased before bursting into laughter, making me jump as bits of saliva landed on my face. _IT has a name?_ I thought. "Why, the party is just beginning." He went silent again, staring at me intensely, a stupid grin _pained_ across his face.

I quickly wiped off the spit that landed on me and slowly reached into one of the pockets of my bag with my other hand, feeling for the vile of blessed water. _Pennywise_ leaned forward and smelled the air around me, he looked as though he was about to start talking once again.

"I don't - " He began, but I didn't want to hear what he had to say, I found the vile and splashed some of the water across his face.

He immediately broke into screams and clutched his skin. I shoved him aside and headed down the bus isle and towards the door.

The clowns screams turned into laughter, the sudden change in his attitude caused me to trip and grab one of the poles for stability, and I quickly glanced back to watch him stand and step down off of the seat.

"Hao hao hao hao hao haoah! You are going to be so much FFFUN!" More spit sprayed from his mouth as he burst forward. I turned around again towards the head of the bus, but found myself facing the back of it.

I blinked hard a couple times, _I could have sworn that I was running to the front of the bus just a second ago_, but I was now right where I started, at the back. I spun around to see the clown charging at me, laughing and growling uncontrollably. My right hand grabbed the talisman around my neck and I closed my eyes tight, drawing in a deep breath.

"Madam Moora," I chanted, "protect me."

My eyes flashed open ready to fight, but he was gone. I looked around the empty abandoned bus and didn't see him anywhere. I crept forward slightly, expecting him to jump out at me, but nothing happened. I took in another deep breath and bolted to the front of the bus. Something caught my leg and I hit the ground hard, I felt winded, and a throbbing ache burned on my knees and palms.

"Ack!" I flinched, lifting my right hand to see a large scrape across the heel of my palm. Blood began oozing between the peeled skin and bits of dirt. I clenched my teeth and formed a fist, trying to ignore the pain, and spun around to see a large tan claw holding my leg. My gaze followed its arm to behind one of the chairs, and a giant praying mantis scurried out from behind it.

I gasped and tried to pull my leg free, but it was stuck. The jagged parts of his claw were like tape and it tugged at my jeans. I kicked at it as hard as I could, but it didn't budge.

The mantis hissed and green foam bubbled from its mouth; its grotesque eyes flickered in the dim light, and it lurched forward and dragged me closer to him. I kicked it square in the chest and reached for the vile of water again. I lifted the vile to splash the mantis, but its other claw knocked it out of my hand. I flinched to grab it, but instead, I batted it harder and it launched across the isle, where bounced off of one of the chair sides and landed on the claw that was holding my leg. Water spewed out of the narrow vile, and spilled all over the creatures claw and my knee.

The mantis screeched in pain as its arm sizzled and burned; its hard skin peeled back and flaked like a burning book. The stench was almost too much to bare; I put my hand over my nose and mouth as I pulled my leg away from it's burning limb. I heard a loud crack as the top portion of its arm snapped off and released me from its grip.

The beast flipped backwards and started writhing around on the floor as its arms flailed on the chairs; busting them off of their mounts in a rage and launching them across the bus. Some of them hit the windows, and busted through the non broken ones, as others broke the chairs that they landed on.

I waisted no time. I stood up and limped over to the front door, dodging the chairs that flew past me. I grabbed the handle for the door and jerked it open.

I looked back to see the clown standing in the isle once again. Part of his arm was torn off and his face was all blistered and bleeding. He stood there panting and pissed off. Our eyes locked on each other, it felt like a challenge; like the game was beginning and I was the wining team, _for now_. He launched towards me again, consumed with anger; his arms flailed and blood sprayed all over the bus from his missing limb.

I tried to spin around and jump out the door, but he knocked into me too quick. I fell out of the door and hit the hard concrete below; the bus _continued_ to drive away as I toppled over, rolling like a sack of potatoes.

When I stopped I couldn't breath, looking up to see the perfectly normal bus continue its way down the highway in broad daylight. My vision was blurry and my entire body ached. I coughed up blood and wrapped my arms around my ribs. The pain was unbearable, and I could see little chunks of my clothes and bits skin left behind on the pavement where I had hit. My body shook, no doubt trying to fight through the shock of the impact. I dragged myself to the shoulder of the road and coughed up blood.

A shadowed figure on a bike was pacing up behind me.

"He-help." I desperately managed to say. The figure leapt off the bike, and let it roll past us.

"Nikita?" Beverly shouted, "OMG NIKITA! WHAT HAPPENED?"

Relieved it was her, I tried my best to say something, "P-P-P" My body hurt like a hot metal clamp was crushing my lungs, "Pennywise."

"SHH! I will get help." She stood to run to find someone but I grabbed at her clothes, my fist weak with pain.

"Don't - leave me." I gasped.

Her hand grabbed mine and for a moment I felt safe. I felt like it was falling backwards and warmth covered my entire body like a blanket; then everything went black.


	11. Chapter 11 - The Hospital

Chapter 11 - The Hospital

I woke up to a blinding white light; my eyes burned, but it didn't compare to the amount of pain that pulsed though my entire body. The shock of waking up shot through my veins and stabbed at my lungs. I began to cough and gasp for air; I covered my mouth with my arm and attempted to sit up, but it hurt too much. I laid back down and gasped a few times before I noticed where I was; Derry Hospital.

The hospital room was very plain and white; I blinked hard a few times and looked at the foot of the bed I was laying in. I felt my eyes tear up in pain as I noticed a figure standing there.

I filched and quickly reached to my side to grab my vile of blessed water, but my bag wasn't there. I clawed at the blankets surrounding me, but didn't feel any of my belongings there, I felt naked; vulnerable. I looked up to study the figure once again. It appeared to be Beverly, but her back was turned to me, and her arms looked to be crossed over her chest, her head was down.

I shook in fear. Last time Beverley was acting like this, I was in the Neibolt house. I did my best not to move. My eyes darted around the room looking for any sort of protection, but there was nothing. I remembered my talisman, and reached for my neck; it was still there. Relieved I looked back to Beverley.

I heard a faint sob and watched her body sake slightly. I froze for a moment trying to figure out if this was another one of Pennywise's games, or if it was actually her. I decided to swallow my fear, and speak up.

"Beverly?"

She drew in a deep breath and turned her head slightly in my direction.

"You were going to leave." She spat. I felt my heart sink deep into my stomach. It was her.

"Beverly, I - "

"No!" Beverly spun around and gripped the end of the hospital bed; her face was red and covered in tears. "You were going to abandon us in this town! Abandon ME!" Her words hurt like fire, and I felt overwhelmed with shame. "I welcomed you into the Losers club and you were about to just disappear!"

"Beverly, I wasn't welcomed into your little group - "

"You were still leaving me!" She raised one hand and pointed to her chest, then stood there in silence. I looked down to her arm and could see a faint hand print bruise on her forearm. I gasped slightly and looked back up to her eyes.

"Bev, what did he do to you?"

She stood there shaking; her eyes darted back and forth before she quickly withdrew her hand and pulled down her sleeve.

"Enough. He did enough." Her voiced cracked, and she looked down.

I watched her struggle internally for a few seconds before she looked back at me; her lips pushed together in a tight quivering line. Her eyes wondered up to the ceiling and she looked as though she was about to speak, but she couldn't.

"He found out you took Eddie and Ben to the hospital, didn't he?"

Beverly shook her head and looked down again, as she held herself tighter. My arms raised to offer her comfort, and she ran to my side and collapsed. When she grabbed me, the pain returned to my ribs and I winced.

"Oh! I'm sorry," she sat up quickly and wiped her face with her sleeves. Her voice sounded like she had been crying for hours. "It's more than that. The Losers broke up. We took Eddie home, and before we could take Ben home, Bill and Richie fought. I was so upset when I got home that Daddy could tell something happened. He didn't hit me or anything, but he sure frightened me." She lifted her sleeve and ran her finger down the bruise. "I was going to tell you yesterday morning, but I saw you on the bus. Leaving." Beverly paused as she looked me dead in the eye. "Words can't even describe how betrayed I felt." She was silent for another second. "I was headed to tell the rest of the Losers thinking that maybe, maybe it was enough to reunite us. Then I saw you bleeding on the road. Nikita, what happened? What is going on with you? And why have you been acting weird since we were at Neibolt?"

The image of Beverly's skin dangling from her skull as blood poured from her mouth and eyes flashed in my mind. I could feel my limbs getting tingly and it became harder to breath.

"Nikita," Beverly's voice pulled me back to reality, "what is going on with you?"

"Where's my bag?"

"What?"

"Where is my bag?"

"Right here." She gestured towards the chair beside us, "Why?" She leaned over and grabbed it, then handed it over to me as I frantically took it from her and riffled though its pockets.

The vile wasn't there.

"Damn it! It's not here!"

"What's not here?"

"The vile of water. It was my best defence against Pennywise, and it got dumped on the bus!"

"Is this like the salt in your apartment?"

"Yes, I'm not safe without it. I need to get more."

"Okay, but can you please tell me what happened first!?"

I clenched my jaw and stared at her. _What would I tell her? Where would I start?_ _Do I tell her that the clown used her image to scare me? That he saved me from falling in Neibolt? Or that he tried to kill me for leaving town? _

I was down one of my best defences and felt more vulnerable than ever. My head was spinning so hard that my hands shot up and grabbed my temples.

"Beverly, he didn't let me leave town." I began, "I couldn't stand the fear any longer, and decided to go, but he got to me anyway." I clenched my bag tight, searching for what to say next. "I have been SO consumed by this that I am sick, look at me! I'm thin! I haven't been eating, and I can barely sleep without seeing _HIM_! Something is horribly wrong with this town and no one sees _IT_! My nerves are shot, and I thought leaving town would be a solution. A way for me to get my life back on track. I came here for a decent start, and now it feels like it is my end. You and the Losers are more that capable of figuring this out, and when I am around, I just screw things up for you."

Beverly sat there looking at the floor for the longest time. I didn't know what else to say. It was the truth. And she knew it. I could see it flickering behind her eyes; the guilt, the acceptance.

"Don't leave me behind." She looked up from the ground, her eyes still holding tears. "If you leave, I leave. And then maybe we have a chance to get out _together_."

The two of us smiled at each other, envisioning what it would be like if we succeeded at leaving this town together. It felt nice to escape from the dark thoughts of Derry for a moment.

"But we need to fix Derry first." Beverly continued, "We can't run away from this."

Knock, knock.

We both looked over to the door to see Eddie. He looked to be in better shape than the last time I saw him, except now he sported a large white cast on his arm.

"Hey Nikita, are you okay?" He asked as he hooked his thumb in to his fanny-pack.

"I sure hurt right now. How did you know I was here?"

"My mom had me in again for another cheek up, when I over heard that you were brought in. My mom thinks my broken arm is going to turn blue and fall off, so I'm here all of the time, haha." He chuckled slightly before looking over to Beverly. "Hey Bev."

The air in the room felt heavy. _What ever happened between these guys must have been pretty bad_, I thought.

"Hey Eds." She replied, shooting him a small smile.

Eddie felt more welcome in the room, and he walked in and sat down on the opposite side of my bed from Beverly. It felt really good to have two friends watching over me. For the first time since Beverly invited me to Bills garage,, I felt like I belonged. The fear of Pennywise was put on the back burner for just a moment, and things felt _normal_.

The three of us talked for hours. We spoke of friends and family. Where I came from, and about Madam Moora and all of the wonderful things she taught me. We spoke and laughed for so long, that we hardly noticed the sun setting.

"I had better go home," Beverly said reluctantly looking out the window, "Daddy is already pretty mad. But once I tell him I was with you, he shouldn't be too upset."

"Yea, me too," Eddie added, "Mom's probably thinking the doctors just wanted to do more tests on me, so I'm sure she won't be mad."

Beverly and Eddie paused and looked at each other. I could see the question of _what now_ floating between them. The Losers had broken up, and here these two had come across some common ground together.

"Why don't you guys walk each other home?" I smiled. The two of them looked at me and then back to each other and smiled too.

"Will you be alright alone, Nikita?" Beverly asked. I nodded my head and gestured for the two of them to go home.

"What else could possibly happen?" I chuckled.

The two of them giggled a little and walked each other out the door as they said their good-byes to me.

Alone once again with my thoughts, I leaned back in the bed and let my smile disappear; my ribs still hurt like crazy, and my entire body ached. The hospital sounded eerily quiet and no one was walking in the hallway.

I pushed the paranoid thought aside and forced myself to think about the Losers. _They each were a piece of a puzzle_, I thought, _they just need to figure out how the fit together_. A small spark of hope flickered within me, _maybe I am the one to piece them all back together_.


	12. Chapter 12 - A Rescue Mission

Chapter 12 - A Rescue Mission

I woke up to a doctor standing beside my bed checking on the machines that I was hooked up to. The room was bright and I felt more rested than I had felt since arriving at Derry. The doctor was holding a clipboard out on his arm and he scribbled down some notes on it as he noticed me attempting to sit up.

"Oh, Miss Jones, you're awake, good. I trust you had a good nights sleep." He smiled. His face looked very sincere as he held his clip board tight to his chest. I sat up a bit more and shifted my hips a bit and crawled my legs more upright. Everything on my body felt stiff and I grunted in pain, but it was nothing close to the pain I felt yesterday.

"Ow." I winced, "I did yes, Thank you."

"Good, good." He muttered back. "Miss Jones, I'm glad you woke up just now, I've been wanting to discuss your file. Do you have a minute?"

"I will see if I can spare a second or two in my busy schedule, haha." I said sarcastically, but my laughter faded as soon as I looked up to see him cringing at my terrible joke. "Heard that one before, huh?"

"A few times.." He cleared his throat, "Anyway, when you came in we thought you had a broken limb or two, but you were lucky. You only ended up with a minor concussion, some scrapes, some bruises and two broken ribs. Neither of your lungs were punctured, but you are going to be sore for a while. I am sending you home with some pain meds, and instructions to take it easy for at least the next two weeks. Your ribs are going to be tender for a while, and you may experience a head ache or two. You were passed out for about 24 hours after the incident, but part of that was pain, and part of that was the morphine. I gave you a bit more last night just to give you a good rest before we send you home." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a bottle of pills and handed it to me. "Take one of these every 12 hours for three days starting tonight, and then every 24 hours after that for up to five days if you feel like you're still in pain. We will call you periodically to see how you are fairing."

"Thank you Doctor." I replied as he smiled and nodded.

"I do have to help out my next patient right away, so, do you have any questions for me?"

"Nope, not that I can think of."

"Excellent, well I hope you heal fast, and if you do come up with any questions or concerns don't hesitate to call the receptionist."

"Will do."

The doctor nodded again, and headed for the door quickly as he blurted out a "have a good day" before he disappeared down the hallway.

I pulled my self out of bed and reached for the folded clothes on the chair beside me, then shuffled my way to the bathroom. I was sliding off the hospital gown as I closed the door behind me and jumped when I noticed my reflection in the full-length mirror attached to the back of the door.

I sighed in relief and studied my reflection. My body sure looked rough; my arms and legs were covered in scabs and bruises, my forehead had some scrapes on it, my chin was bruised, and the entire right side of my rib cage was a deep purple. I took a step closer to the mirror and leaned towards the reflection of my face; I searched for my self in my eyes, but they were cold and hollow. _How could I have let this go so far?_

"What do I do now?" I asked myself, but no answer followed. I turned to put my clothes on, applied a new layer of vanilla liquid and prepared to leave the hospital, throwing by bag over my shoulder before I too disappeared down the hall way.

* * *

As I walked back to my apartment I thought about Beverley. I thought about how she put her hurt feelings aside to help me, and about how my incident brought her and Eddie together. _How am I going to get the rest of the group back together?_ I thought.

"AHHHHH!" Someone screamed.

It startled me, and I ran to see who it was. Just around the corner was a bus stop, but no one was there. I walked over to the bench and felt a crunch under my shoe. I staggered back to see a child's glasses. I bent down to pick them up, and noticed some drag marks that led to the forest behind the sidewalk. My heart sank. _He took another one…_

Without thinking I ran down the path of pushed down grass and shrubs, shoving branches out of my way as they came flying at me. My ribs hurt, but I had to get to the child.

I came to an opening where the river met a large pipe; water poured from its mouth like liquid fire from a dragon. I could hear my heart beating in my ears, and I suddenly felt really nervous.

"Pennywise!" I shouted, "Where are you!?" I clenched my fists as they began to shake. I forced myself to walk towards the pipe opening. "Where is the child!?"

I jumped a little at the sound of my voice repeating back to me in an echo from the pipe. I leaned closer to the opening; I froze and looked down at the glasses in my hand and felt a slight wave of bravery. I took in a deep breath and grabbed the edge of the pipe, and pulled my self up into its mouth; water continued to out of it, and it stunk. "Pennywise!"

I continued down the cold throat of the pipe, holding my hand out to the damp metal wall for balance. The pipe curved and it became dark really quick. I hesitated to go any further. _How would I even know that he came this way?_ I was about to turn back when something bought my attention.

A different smell reached my nose; an iron kind of smell. The cold water that rushed past my feet now had a slight warm tinge to it. I looked down to try to see what it was, but the water looked dark; I couldn't see anything. I reached in my bag for a match, and lit it. The green-brown water had a stream of red flowing through it and over my shoes. I followed its flow and looked up to see a child laying down sideways in the water. I took a step closer, but froze when I noticed what was hovering above the child.

_The clown_; he was grunting and chewing on the kid, letting the boys limp body wiggle with every bite. My stomach felt sick as I gasped and staggered back, falling onto the wall. _He eats the children!?_

My quick movement made the water splash, and his glowing eyes darted up to look at me; blood cascaded down his chin. He began laughing quietly under his breath; his twisted smile was full of sharp, jagged teeth.

The match burnt down to my finger and I felt a flash of pain, "Ah!" I gasped and threw the match down. It was dark, but I could still make out the clowns shadowed figure.

I turned to run, but he lunged up and grabbed me as I turned the corner. The two of us landed hard on the wall; I grunted as my ribs cried out in pain.

I could see from the light of the opening that his smile returned back to normal, but the blood from the boy was still smeared over his make up. His large wet gloved hands had my throat; they made my hands look so small as I did my best to pull them off of me. His eyes burned with rage.

"You dare follow me?" He threatened, "You think you can sneak up on Pennywise and - "

He paused as we heard children's laugher from the end of the pipe. He slowly looked over to the light with is lips pressed tightly together in a thin line. I too looked over to the opening, the light was bright but I could see a family out at the rivers side. They appeared to be setting up a picnic; two parents, two kids and a dog.

Pennywise looked back at me and slowly lifted a finger to his mouth, "Shhh.."

This was my opportunity to get help, I took in a quick breath and turned my head back to the light, "HEL-" The clown quickly covered my mouth, silencing my cry.

The family outside didn't even notice. I screamed under his hand and tried to pull it off of my mouth. He took in a deep breath, and slid his hand down my chin, releasing my face from his grip.

I tried to scream again, but something was wrong. No sound came out, my hands flew up to feel my mouth, but it wasn't there. I had no lips! The skin was completely smooth, and I couldn't call out to the family for help.

I looked up at Pennywise feeling totally helpless. He smiled at me, looking completely satisfied with what he had done as he bent down, as he hoisted me over his shoulder. I kicked and punched him as hard as I could, as I watched the light at the end of the tunnel disappear around the corner again. I felt another jab of pain from my ribs, and I had to stop fighting.

He threw me down beside the boys body as he grabbed our ankles and began dragging us further down the pipe. The pain in my side eased sightly, and I felt like I was able to fight again.

I flailed and bumped into the little boys body that was being dragged beside me; his eyes shot open. I tried to scream, but it was too muffled under my skin to make a sound. The boy coughed up blood and looked at me. He noticed that I had no mouth, and screamed. He shoved me away and Pennywise's grip slipped on both of us. My leg hit the ground, I tried to get up and run as quick as I could; grabbing the kid in the process, but the boy shoved me away again, still screaming.

Pennywise leaped at the kid and covered his mouth as he cracked the boys neck sideways, the scream echoed though out the pipe as it slowly faded; the boys limp body slid down into the stream at the bottom of the pipe.

I almost made it to the corner when I tripped. I looked back to see Pennywise had stretched out his arm and grabbed my leg. I had a flash back to the first time I saw his arm like this, abnormally long but this time, he had me, and he was dragging me back towards him. My bag slipped from over my shoulder and began floating down the pipe and towards the light. Panic washed over me, and I desperately reached for it, but it just slipped through my finger tips.

I kicked and slammed the clowns hand as hard as I could on the ground, and he hissed in pain, letting go of my leg and recoiled it.

He jumped in the air and landed right beside me as I grabbed my bag and reached inside of it. He knelt down over and I kicked him hard in the jaw. I pulled a scarf from my bag and twisted it around his neck as fast as I could. I pulled him down and crawled on his back, twisting the scarf tighter. He stood and gasped for air as he tried to grab at the scarf but he couldn't grip it enough pull it off.

His arms twitched and large brown mantis legs burst from under his gloves, ripping though the fabric as he roared in pain. He spun on the spot a few times before falling down to one knee.

My hands shook but I knew that I couldn't let go. I felt him try to take in a few more strained breaths before pausing. For a second I doubted that he was even choking, _what if it's an act?_

He jolted, throwing my body over his head as I landed hard on my back in front of him. He stood up straight as I let go of the scarf and ran towards the opening. I looked back to see him loosing control on the scarf, ripping and tearing at the fabric. I slipped on the wet base of the pipe and fell out into the bright light of the day.

I sat up and gasped for air, my mouth sucking in a bit of the water that was pouring on my head from the pipe above me. I spat it out and coughed for a moment realizing that my mouth was back. I sighed in relief and felt my lips, pulling them every which way.

I opened my eyes and leaned forward wiping the water off of my face when I noticed the family was sitting on the shore, staring at me completely bewildered. I stood up quickly and slicked my hair back as I cleared my throat and straightened my clothes.

The four of them stared at me as I left the river and disappeared into the forest. I could feel the water sloshing in my shoes as I pulled myself through the trees and back out to the road beside the bus stop. I looked back to the trees as my heart sank, _I couldn't save that boy._


	13. Chapter 13 - True Friendship

Chapter 13 - True Friendship 

The world seemed grey and hopeless; I was completely soaked from head to toe. I tried so hard to be brave and save that boy from _that_ monsters clutches; but all of my efforts were useless. I couldn't leave town, and I could't save him. _Hell_, I_ couldn't even protect myself_, I thought. I winced in pain, as my ribs began to throb, reminding me to take it easy; I scoffed at the idea.

I finally made it back to my apartment building and pulled the glass door wide open, as an elderly couple shuffled their way through the threshold. They both looked at me with warm smiles, but when they caught a whiff of the sewer water dripping off of my clothes, their smiles turned to scowls as they winkled their noses and shuffled quickly down the sidewalk. I smelled my shoulder and choked a bit on the nasty stench.

I turned to run inside and away from the couple as fast as I could; my shoes still squeaking with every step as I made my way up the stairs hoping to not run into any more people. My stomach turned upside down when I heard someone enter the stairwell. _Please don't smell me, please don't smell me_, I chanted in silence. The light pitter patter of the steps sounded familiar, and I looked up to see Beverly.

"Oh, what a stink!" She mocked as she held her hand over her nose and mouth, "What happened to you?"

The words didn't come to me. I hadn't realized just how much I wanted to cry till I was in her presence. My eyes burned as tears began running down my cheeks.

"I couldn't save him." I blurted.

Beverly's face turned into immediate concern.

"Couldn't save who?" She asked.

"A boy I saw _him_ take. He almost took me too." I collapsed down on the step as Beverly ran to my side, I could tell that she wanted to give me a hug, but she hesitated when the smell of the sewer water hit her again; instead putting her arm around me, she sat down beside me on the same step.

We sat there in my sobbing silence for a while till we heard someones foot steps walking up the stairs from below. Beverly helped me stand and began walking me up the stairs.

"Come, daddy's at work. We can talk at my place."

We both scurried to her apartment door and quickly ran inside before anyone could see us. The moment we entered, all I could smell was cigarette smoke; it hit me a brick wall. My throat felt immediately scratchy, and I cleared it as I wiped the tears off of my cheeks.

"So, this is your place. I've never been inside it before." It appeared to be a home that was very uncared for. The wallpaper was peeling, the carpet was very old and stained, and the kitchen as super out dated and worn out, and there was a cigarette tray on every table surface, each filled with a pile of ashes. _How was Beverly able to live here?_

"Yup," Beverly replied, "I hate bringing people over. It's not always the most comfortable space to be in. Come on, we can sit in my room. Its cleaner in there."

She walked down the hall to the brightest room, she opened the window and then closed the door behind us; the fresh air was such a relief as I dew in a deep breath.

"There," She said as she sat on the bed, "now what boy?"

I clenched my first and began to tell her what had happened. Her face did not look fearful; i watched it turn and twist into an angry expression. The determination to end this monster was burning in her eyes; it was a look that I couldn't see in myself earlier that day.

"FUCK! WHO DOES HE THINK HE IS?" She shouted as she stood. Her hands shook with rage as I jumped at her response. "We need to end this."

"How?"

"I'm going to get the gang back together. You get cleaned up. I'm going to go find Eddie and tell him what happened, and see if he can convince Richie to come back to the group. Ben, Bill and Mike will come back for sure, but Daddy is coming home for lunch today, so I only have an hour to get Eddie, and hopefully that will give him enough time to convince Richie. Then we will finish _him_ together." She paced around her room and waved her finger with every new thought that burst into her head.

"Are you nuts?" I interrupted, "What If he kills you? What if he kills all of us?" She looked over at me confused as I continued, "I tried already. He is too strong! You and I can leave right now! With us together, I think we might be able to leave Derry behind! Forever! We can start a new! And get away from _him_!"

"No."

"No?"

"Yes, No. I will not leave my family behind." Her arms folded over her chest.

"Your family? Who, your dad? Bev, he is an abusive monster! You need to escape from him too! You don't deserve to live like this!"

"Not my dad," her eyes glanced over to a post card propped up on her nightstand light; it looked as though it had a poem written on it, "The family I chose for myself."

There was a long pause, as both of us sat there in silence, processing what just happened between us. Beverly looked so ready to run into battle, but she didn't understand what it was like to be locked in his clutches, wondering what your last thought on this Earth was going to be; preparing for death. I had to protect her and the Losers from what they were about to run blindly into.

"Okay," my voice cracked, "but we have to do it tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? Why?"

"I have a few things that I have to gather what could help us." I turned to leave her room when something caught my eye; salt. It traced her entire room, and I turned to her and smiled.

"I learned from the best." She smiled back at me, as I felt more tears burn in my eye.

"You're awesome Beverly. Never change." I could feel a lump in my throat grow as I walked out of her apartment. My heart sank as I thought about what I had to do; what I knew I had to do. _This could be the last time that I will every see her_, I thought. But I now had a purpose. I closed my apartment door, locked the deadbolt tight and took in a deep breath as I leaned on the wall.

"I am going to end this."


	14. Chapter 14 - A Twist of the Knife

Chapter 14 - A Twist of the Knife 

I left my apartment with a new sense determination burning in my heart. I had to put my selfish fear aside and hit that clown head on. I almost had him earlier that day when I tried to strangle him with the scarf, which means he has a weakness.

I entered a hunting store and searched for some type of weapon. I looked though the glass cabinet at the guns, knives and arrow heads; imagining how the battle would play out with each one, until a large machete like knife caught my eye. It had a long smooth blade with a jagged base in front of the guard, and a dark wooden handle; _a bowie knife_, _It's perfect_, I thought.

I bought it and took it back to my apartment, then I began carving the same protection symbols on it that were on my talesman, with a few additions of my own. _If I am going to win this, I have to use every scrap of witchcraft I know._

I grabbed the container of black, chalk like, paint, and drew a pentagram on the side table, then placed my half melted candles on each of its points. I placed the knife in the centre of the table and lit some incense as I chanted under my breath; the knife glistened in the candle light, as if it was growing in power. I placed my palms on the table and thought back to Madam Moora. She did this same ritual for my talisman, and it has protected me through out this whole endeavour.

"Give me strength."

I shoved the knife in its sheath and tied it to my belt. I applied a fresh layer of the vanilla liquid on my chest and held the talisman tight in my hand as I turned to leave. _I am ready_.

* * *

Outside was hot and humid, and the sun was blaring down in a cloudless sky. I shoved branches and bushes out of my way as I marched directly to the pipe where I last saw _him_.

The family's picnic was long over, only leaving a square of flat grass beside the stream. I glared at the pipe entrance and squeezed the hilt of the knife as I approached its opening to peer inside.

"Hey! YOU!" A voice shouted from behind me. I spun to see four familiar faces, all of which were unwelcome; Henry Bowers, Belch Huggins, Patrick Hockstetter and Victor Criss.

I was prepared to fight Pennywise, but not these guys. Beverly and Eddie filled me in on the toxic abuse that this group had inflicted on the kids of Derry.

"You're the one hanging out with those little fuckers, aren't you?" Henry scoffed. The other three looked as if they were hyenas watching a lion on the hunt, their eyes hungry to watch another victim fall under their leaders boot so they can clean up the scraps. "You're not as ugly as the rest of them."

"BUURRRP!" I jumped at the sound of Belch's obnoxious habit, and I quickly I began to feel nervous.

"What do ya say we get better aquatinted? Huh?" Henrys slimy words slid down my spine and made me feel sick as he reached down into his pants and trusted his hips towards me. I turned to leave but Belch and Patrick stood on either side of me and cut off my escape. "Where are going, doll?" Henry stepped right close to me; his breath stunk and I cringed.

"I have nothing to say to you." I said trying to avoid eye contact. The gang let out quiet "oohs" and "aahs", as Henry smiled at the challenge.

"Oh, we have a feisty one." He licked his lips and slithered closer as he put his hands up on the pipe behind me. "I like it when they get feisty." He tried to coax my head up to look at him.

I bit my lip, and kneed him as hard as I could in the junk. He crippled over in pain as I slipped under his arm and shoved him aside. I ran as fast as I could, but just as I felt the taste of freedom, a branch came out of no where and hit me square in that face. Pain shot through my nose, forcing my eyes to tear up in shock. I hit the ground as I heard them laugh. Blood poured out of my nose and covered the rocks under me.

Henry stood up slowly, looking throughly unimpressed. His hand held his groin and he stumbled towards me.

"You fucking idiots! You ruined her goddamn fucking face!" He reached in his pocked and pulled out a switchblade. "Now, I just have to cut her. Fucking cunt."

Victor and Belch grabbed my arms and hoisted me up to look at Henry. My head was throbbing, and my vision was blurred as I watched him approach me with his knife.

"I'll teach you to fucking kick me in the balls!" He made a fist and punched me in the side. I felt my ribs crack, and it suddenly became hard to breath. I cried out in pain and coughed up blood as I fell limp in the arms of the two bullies who were holding me.

"Oh shit Henry!" Belch shouted as he pointed at my side. He grabbed the edge of my shirt and lifted it up, revealing my purple and blue ribs. "I think something is wrong with her."

I coughed more as Henry turned to Belch and screamed.

"I'LL FUCKING DECIDE!" He lifted his knife and swiped it over my ribcage as blood oozed out from under its blade.

"Ah! Stop! Please." I tried to open my eyes and look at Henry, hoping that he would take pity on me and leave me there alone.

"What, you bitch!" He lifted the knife to eye level and hesitated. He stood there shaking for a second, then burst backwards. He spun on the spot like he was about to wind up to throw a baseball, and launched himself towards me. His knife dug deep in my gut and up behind my ribcage.

His faded green eyes looked crazed; darting back and forth as he bathed in my suffering. He bit his bottom lip and panted as be began to twist his knife. I tried to be strong, the pain was too much. I burst into tears and screamed.

Henry quickly yanked the knife out as more blood spewed from my body. I felt instantly light headed and fell weak in Victor and Belch's arms. Henry laughed and mocked my pain as something screeched from within the pipe, which caused him to immediately fall silent. Everyone froze and slowly looked over to the pipes opening.

I could feel the hair on my neck start to stand on end. _He's coming_.

"Henry," Victor said, "what was that?"

No one answered. We all stared at the pipe; our faces twisted with worry. The pipe growled, and I felt Victor and Belch slowly let go of my arm and back away. I didn't have the strength in me to stand, so I fell to the ground and gasped for air.

We could hear loud claw like scrapes coming from the pipe, as the creature emerged into the light. It was large and reptile like with two massive arms pulling its massive body out of the shadows. Once it was in the light, it looked like a giant crocodile with its skin decaying and flaking off, revealing parts of its gruesome skeleton. It hissed and growled as saliva leaked from its mouth and landed in the water below. It looked Henry straight in the eyes and paused.

Patrick and Belch began whimpering in fear as Henry stood there in shock, his muscles immobilized from terror. Victor turned and ran; the creature hissed and spit webbing out at him, pining him down on the ground. The other three jumped and screamed, as they each ran in different directions.

The creature pulled the rest of its body out of the pipe and landed in the stream below it with a loud splash. It reached out and grabbed Patrick, then threw him in the air; his little body pin wheeled over the trees, as the creatures tail flicked and hit Belch, knocking him over. Belch stood up as fast as he could and disappeared into the bush. The creature didn't try to stop him; his priorities were focused on someone else. It launched forward and slammed its claws down on Henry.

Henry cried out to his friends, but no one came to his aid.

"YOU FUCKING COWARDS!" He shouted. The creature leaned forward and roared in his face, spraying thick syrup like saliva all over him.

I couldn't stand it anymore. I knew who the creature was, and I couldn't let him kill anyone else. Even if it was Henry Bowers. I wasn't sure if I could do anything at this point, my side and nose were bleeding out so much that I was laying in a puddle and my breaths were getting shorter and shorter by the second.

"STOP!" I managed to say, wheezing as I exhaled.

The creature fell silent, and its head whipped over to look at me.

"No…" I clenched my fist and held my side tight as I tried to crawl over towards Henry. The creatures yellow eyes watched as I reached my weak hand over to hold his claw.

Once I gripped his giant talon, I began to cough again More blood flew from my mouth and landed all over the ground in front of me; I could feel it dripping down my chin this time. My body grew weaker by the second, but _I had to do this_. The creature sighed and lifted his claw. Henry didn't hesitate to scurry away and disappear into the woods without looking back. The creature looked back to me and began to shrink as the web holding down Victor faded. He too stood up and disappeared into the trees, following Henrys path.

I laid on the grass hunched over with my forehead on the ground, still coughing hard. I breathed heavily and wheezed some more as Pennywise stepped close to me. I could feel my self fading away. _Is this what it feels like to die?_ The pool of blood that surrounded me was growing in size, and I was in and out of conciseness.

Pennywise's large gloved hand reached down and slid under my chin, tilting my head up to look at him. He was crouched over in a squatted position, looking down at me with a slight softness in his eyes. His grip was gentle as his thumb slid across my chin, wiping away some of the blood from my nose and mouth.

Something inside me felt revived. My breathing became slightly easier, and the two of us began to stand. I drew in a beep breath, then gasped from the shock if breathing in so much air all at once, and collapsed into his arms. Something inside of me was changing, _I was healing_. I could feel my ribs fuse back together, pulling themselves out of my punctured lung; my skin pealed back to its normal state and all of the bleeding stopped.

I was still too weak to stand, but I used all of my strength to look up at his face. He looked kind, his features round and soft. He looked like he did in my dream; his eyes a deep blue. His arms were wrapped around me as I regained the feeling in my legs. I pushed my arms against his chest and leaned away. _This is impossible._

"I don't understand."

His eye contact was over whelming. And his smile twisted unnaturally, making me feel uncomfortable.

"I can't let my favourite play thing get damaged, can I?" He replied.

"Your _what_?"

He burst out in crazed laughter and held me tighter. "You can't die Nikita Jones! You can't get away from me that easily!"

I tried to push him away from me, but his grip was too tight.

"Get off of me!"

"HAHAHA! NO! Your fear is too delicious!" His mouth watered as I squirmed in his arms. He leaned in close to my neck and rolled his eyes back as he drew in a deep breath.

I dropped to my knees, slipping through his grip and rolled way from him as he crouched low and chased me. I felt like a mouse caught in a cats clutches; he knew that he could swallow me whole, but he chose to play with his food instead.

"There is just one problem." He spat. "That." He lifted his hand and pointed at my neck.

I looked down to see my talesman. _Every time he has attacked me, he was never able to hurt me himself._ I gripped it tight in my hand and looked back up at him. _This ends now_, I thought.

"No more," I reached for the Bowie knife at my side and pulled it from its sheath. "Your torture ends here."

Pennywise raised an eye brow looking surprised and impressed at my bravery.

"After all I've done for you?" He held out his arms to his side as if he wanted a hug.

"All you've done? All you have _done_ is murder and inflict pain to those of Derry!" The two of us circled each other as we spoke. He had a smirk on his face that looked like he knew every little detail of what I was thinking and it was infuriating.

My hands were shaking. He was right, he has done more than that. He saved me twice, and this time he completely healed me, saving me from death. There was something more to him, and it dug at my curiosity. I've been trying to push the feeling away, but it was bubbling up like lava from a volcano, and I couldn't stop it. I made a final attempt to shove the feeling away and jumped at him with the knife.

Pennywise dodged it with ease and grabbed my wrists as he pinned me against a tree. My fear of him began to return. One of his hands slid along my jaw line. He leaned in close to me and took in another deep breath.

"Mmm.. Intoxicating." He hummed as he pushed his body into mine, "I know you are wanting to save your friends. It's very noble of you. But you can't win." I squirmed under his weight, but it only delighted him more. "I am the eater of worlds. An all powerful being with infinite power. And you and your little knife cannot to stop me!" His eyes burned into mine for a few seconds filling my head with a flood of extreme emotions. His thumb and forefinger made it to the edge of my chin, and he gave it a slight squeeze. "BUT.. I am not opposed to, making a _deal_."

I jerked my head away from his hand, "A deal?"

"Yes, a _deal_." He smiled.

"What kind of deal?"

"Mmmm.. Use your imagination." His voice cracked as his face came closer to mine; I could faintly smell popcorn and it was hypnotizing. His grip loosened on my wrist, and my arms slowly lowered down to my side; the knife still tight in my fist.

His eyes were yellow again, reading though mine like an open book. He knew everything I felt and everything I thought. I could see him waiting for something specific. I felt a tug in my heart. I've never felt it before, not like this. It was hard to resist. I decided to give in a little and it felt comfortable. I allowed myself to shift forward as he leaned down towards me. _This can't be happening_. My head instinctively tilted a little as my eyes closed. I put my hand up to touch his chest, but I felt nothing. My eyes flashed open as I stumbled forward; he wasn't there.

I felt very light headed and confused. _Where did he go? What is wrong with me!? What did he do to me? Why do I feel this way!?_ I looked around desperately searching for him, but the longer I looked, the more his _spell_ wore off. _I can't let this stop me. I still have to kill him._

"THIS CHANGES NOTHING!" I shouted trying to shake the clouded thoughts away. "COME BACK HERE YOU COWARD!"

I stood there waiting for a response, but nothing came. I sat at the base of a tree and signed heavily. I tried hard to lie to myself about what had just happened, but the feeling kept circling back around. I looked down at the knife in my hand. _How am I possibly going to kill him now?_ …

_"A deal" he said._


	15. Chapter 15 - The Deal

Chapter 15 - A Deal 

That evening I pulled one of the kitchen chairs up to the window and sipped on a freshly brewed tea. I sat there for hours watching out the window as the sun slowly went down; the shadows on the ground lazily grew longer, creeping across the cracks and corners till they consumed the entire town.

Part of me really wanted him to come back. I wanted to look into his eyes again. _NO_. I wanted to challenge him again; I wanted fight through the _spell_ he had put on me and end this sickening illness that infested Derry.

I found myself lost back in the moment when his eyes met mine before he disappeared; the fear, the confusion, the longing. For the first time, his presence was comforting, and I wanted to be there, with him. I was drawn to him like moth to a flame, and I didn't understand why. _He is the monster consuming this town, how could I have let him toy with me like that?_

KNOCK, knock, knock!

The sound pulled me back to reality and I jumped; spilling some of my tea down the front of my sweater. I flinched, expecting it to be hot, but it was stone cold. _How long was I sitting here for?_ I asked myself as I looked back out the window to see that night had fallen and the streets were dark.

I placed my tea cup down on the side table and got out of my chair; I looked out the window one more time, and to my surprise, I saw nothing but the erie darkness of the streets. I sighed as I turned around to answer the door.

Knock, knock, knock.

"Coming!" I shouted.

I approached the door and looked through the peek hole. _Shit, its Beverly_. I suddenly became nervous. _What would she think of me now?_ I decided not to tell her what happened and took in a deep breath before opening my door. "Beverly, hello." I said as naturally as possible.

Beverly walked into the door and gave me a funny look. She looked as if she was scanning me from head to toe as she crossed her arms, and then took a second glance at my shirt.

"You have something spilled all over the front of your sweater."

I quickly looked down to see the wet tea stain.

"Oh! Haha. Yea, sorry that just happened. Uh, the door made me jump, and - Uh, so stupid." I pulled the sweater off and chucked it on the couch across the room. "What brings you here?"

Beverly continued to stare at me; her nose scrunched up as if she could smell something fishy.

"I came to talk about tomorrow. I didn't hear back from you after we spoke this morning, so I figured I'd come over." She paused and looked at my forehead. "Nikita, didn't you have a scrape and a bruise on your face?" She leaned forward and tried to move my bangs out of the way, but I dodged her hand and moved them around myself.

"Oh, yea, I did - but its - in my hair line now. It sure is nice that you can't see them any more, eh?"

"Yea, I guess." She looked at the chair parked in front of the window, and slowly looked back to me. "Nikita, are you okay?"

"Yea, I'm great. Why?"

"Cuz you're acting all sketched out."

More nerves hit me like a wave; I felt them flowing down my arms and down my legs as I the temperature in the room suddenly began to increase.

"No, nothing is wrong. I'm just nervous for tomorrow." My arms slapped my hips, then crossed over my chest. _Way to be natural, you idiot._

"Yea, I don't blame you." Beverly walked over to the couch and sat down. I felt a twinge of relief as she looked to be brushing my weirdness off. "So what is the plan?"

"To be honest, I don't know." I said as I moved the chair away from the window and sat beside her on the couch.

I looked out the window again, but there was no change; the same dark street remained empty.

"What did you gather today? Earlier you had mentioned needing to get something ready?"

"Oh, I bought this." I pulled out the bowie knife from my belt and handed it to her. "I carved the same markings, and performed the same ritual that Madam Moora did on this talisman," I held the talismn in my hand and lifted it up to show Beverly, "and I believe this is the only thing that has been preventing him from consuming me. That, and this." I pulled out the vanilla liquid from my pocket and handed it to her, "And now, I believe this should protect you. Mark your chest with an X, and it will protect you from him."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome." I picked up her hand and held it tight for a moment. My heart sank as I bought back to Pennywise. _I think I know what do to_, I thought to myself. "Bev, listen. When this is all over, no matter what, I need you to leave this town. I need you to leave you dad at any cost, and I need to know that you and the rest of the Losers are going to be safe.. Even if - _we_ \- don't succeed. And even if you can't find me - _afterward_."

"Nikita what are you-"

"I need you to promise me Beverly."

She sat there with a concerned look on her face. She looked like she was fighting back a thought, the battle clashed deep within in her eyes, but she eventually gave in and surrendered to the inevitable.

"Alright I promise." She replied.

"Good." I pulled her in for a hug and my eyes burned with tears. I was doing my best to hold myself together so that she doesn't catch on to what I was about to do. I looked out the window and saw a balloon lightly bouncing and rolling down the street, bumping into the curb as it disappeared into the darkness of the night. My body tensioned, _I have to get Beverly out of here_. I cleared my throat and sat up before I continued, "Now for tonight, we both need our rest. And I think it best that we go to bed right away."

I stoop up quickly and trotted to the front door. Beverly sat there in shock, and gave me a funny look as I waved for her to leave. She stood up slowly and walked over to me suspiciously.

"Are you _sure_ you're okay?" She asked.

"Yup. Goodnight Beverly."

"I don't think I should leave you alone tonight. You -"

"Thank you. Bev, for your concern." I said sharply. We both looked at each other in shock at my sudden abruptness. I cleared my throat and continued in a calmer voice. "But I do believe I am going to be fine tonight." I opened the door to the hall and stepped aside giving her space to walk by; I avoided her eye contact. Beverly crossed her arms and raised an eye brow. I looked up at her and tried my best to keep a straight face. "It's okay - I'm okay. You have a good night Beverly, and I will talk to you tomorrow morning."

She hesitated and looked deep in my eyes.

"Listen Nik, we all have to stick together; the losers and you. WE have no idea what _IT_ _is_, or what _IT's_ even capable of. Its better that we just - do this together." She walked through the door and looked back at me. "Just, be safe. Kay?"

"Okay." I smiled to her, and she smiled back. "Put on some of that vanilla liquid tonight."

"I will." She turned hesitantly to walk down the hallway. As I was about to close the door, I thought of one last thing I should say to her, and reefed it open again. "Beverly!" She turned to me as she grabbed her door handle and popped it open. "You are truly a good friend."

"You too."

We both slowly closed our doors at the same time, each a little unsure if it was a good idea to leave each other alone. I stood staring at my door for a few seconds as I processed the last look in Beverly's eyes. She looked almost sad for me. Like she knew what I was about to do, and understood that she had no power to stop me. I witnessed a drop of sad acceptance drown her eyes, as she left me to my fate.

I looked down at the salt line in front of my feet and kicked it a little; breaking the seal and leaving me vulnerable to the monster below. _Come and get me. _I tuned back and walked to the window as I rubbed my arms and searched for him on the street. He was there, I could _feel_ him.

His presence was like a cold chill that lurched through the air like a mist; heavy and damp. I put on a new sweater, and grabbed my knife as I put it back in its sheath. _I sure hope my plan is going to work._

"Hehhehhehh.."

The sound of his low throated chuckle made me jump, and I spun around to face him. But it was not the clown that I saw. It was a tall decaying man who appeared to have been dead for months. I gasped and jumped back into the wall; as I pulled out my knife and held it out in front of me ready for action.

The zombie had a low bubble in his throat and leaned closer. His grotesque hand slowly raised and rested on the wall above my shoulder as his mouth fell open. I could feel my organs begin to shake in fear.

"You were looking for me?" The zombies mouth bubbled with spit and puss. It rolled down the flaking skin on his chin as he leaned in closer to my face in what I believe was an attempt at being seductive. I tuned my head as the repulsive smell crawled up my nose and stabbed at my throat.

"Stop." I whispered as I squinted my eyes.

The zombie looked slightly surprised. His faded grey eyes shifted in the sunken caverns of his eye sockets, and he leaned back, releasing his grip on the wall.

I could hear wet shifting sounds as I slowly turned my head back to face him, and to my relief, it was the clown who was in front of me now. I tried to put the knife back into its sheath, but my hands were too shaky.

"P-Pennywise." I managed to squeak out. The clown looked as if he was studying me; a hungry fire burned in deep his eyes. "I have decided to-"

"I have craved you." He interrupted. I paused and looked him right in the eye.

"You _what_?"

"I have craved your fear since you first entered this town, Nikita Jones." He sucked in a quick breath and his mouth began to water.

I gave up trying to put the knife away. Instead, I slowly held it in front of me again and gripped the handle tightly as he giggled with joy.

"YOu can't help but fear the unknown! You can't help but fear me!" His smile twisted as a drop of saliva dangled from his droopy lip, "AH HAHA!" He jolted forward as he slammed his body against mine, pinning me against the wall; his hands planted firmly on either side of me, his long fingers spread out like talons. I flinched and closed my eyes, as his low chuckle started up again. "Do iTT." He spat.

I opened my eyes to see that I had the knifes point right under his chin; the blade poking into his white skin slightly. He watched me intensely and leaned closer.

"Dooo iT!" He whispered.

My body tensioned as I pushed the knife upwards against his lower jaw and I began to breath heavier and shake more._ Can I do this? Can I finish him right here?_ Questions of self doubt spun in my head like a tornado. I have no idea how much time passed, but it was a slow torture.

"If you won't do iT, then I will." He pushed his head down into the blade and opened his mouth. I gasped as blood poured over my hands. In shock, I pushed myself tighter against the wall.

I stared in horror at the giant blade in his mouth It had sliced his tongue in half, and I could see the two halves writhing around each other like a couple of snakes; slapping against the inner walls of his mouth and splashing in the blood that pooled in his jaw. Slight smoke began to sizzle out of his wound as he backed up and winced slightly; I let go of the handle and held my hands tight to my chest.

He reached up and yanked it out. More blood sprayed from the wound as he flung the knife across the room. He looked as though he was in pain, but it didn't last long. He stood up straight within seconds and shook like a wet dog; his bells chimed out as his ruffles swayed.

He began to approached me once again, as he wiped the blood off of his chin with his arm, and lick his lips. I helplessly watched as his tongue soaked up the blood and fused back together.

I stared at him in shock. Unable to process how he powered though my magic. He stood there and watched me as if I was a show; absorbing every second of my movement. I swallowed hard and tried to speak.

"P-pennywise"

"YEEssss?" Slid forward quickly, and I coward.

"I-I"

"Hmmm?" His large gloved hand reached up and twirled my hair.

_What am I doing? What am I thinking?_ _He is never going to make a deal. My plan is never going to work._ My voice wavered in a low whisper as I continued.

"I want to - make a d-deal." His head tilted quickly and it made me jump. _F-fuck this is harder than I explicated._ I decided to let it out as quickly as I could. "T-take my life in, exchange for the losers safety."

Pennywise raised an eyebrow and tilted his head the other way, "All of them?"

"Yes, all of them." It left like my body was about to implode. Everything was shaking, and I was fighting to keep my tears hidden.

He wrinkled his nose in a slightly disappointed fashion as he processed the offer. I clenched my hands tightly together, unsure if it was my sweat or the blood that was making them cold. His eyes flicked up.

"Deal."

He launched forward and grabbed me as we burst out of the window. His insane laughter echoed in my ears as I desperately held him tight. My grip was shaky, and I believe he was holding me more that I was holding him.

He darted though the forest and down to the river. We were moving so quick that I almost couldn't process were we were any more. We reached the pipe and everything went dark. I could still hear him chuckling under his breath as he muttered to himself.

"OhHo, Penny, you've really outdone yourself this timmmeeMmhmhmhm!"

The air density changed as we descended lower into the sewer. It was almost like the dampness of the walls were absorbing the oxygen. I felt faint and began to rest my head against his. His hair was oddly soft and comforting. The faint intoxicating smell of popcorn teased my nose, and I felt the world slow down. Pennywise was no longer running, and I tried to open my eyes, but they were too heavy. His arms wrapped around me tighter, and I could feel his head shift towards my neck. He took in a deep breath as his whole body shivered for a moment, then relaxed.

My grip on him loosened, and I became lost in the darkness.


	16. Chapter 16 - Lost In Fear

Chapter 16 - Lost in Fear

_Floating._

_ I am. Floating._

My eyes slowly shifted open to see a faded red room. I raised my hand to touch my face, but froze when I looked directly at it. It appeared almost surreal; my skin shifted and my clothes waved like water. I looked down to my feet and they did the same; rippling like a mirage in the desert. After a moment I noticed that my feet weren't touching the ground; they hovered in the air.

_The ground. Where is the ground?_ I looked around me and couldn't tell which way was up and which way was down. I was floating. I felt my stomach turn with an uneasy feeling, so I reached my arms around my knees and pulled my legs in tight to my chest, as I began to hold myself in a ball.

"Nikita Jones!" A woman's piercing voice called, "Nikita Jones!"

The sound of the voice jolted through my body like an electric shock; I jumped as I opened my eyes quickly and found myself sitting on the floor behind a counter.

_I know this place.._

"Nikita Jones! Get up off ma' floor! You're late for work and now you're hidden' behind ma' counter like a crazy person! Get up!" Rosie stood above me waving a table cloth around like a baton. "GET!" She began hitting me with the cloth in an attempt at shooing me out of her restaurant.

I stood up quickly and grabbed the counter as support; the freshly stacked glass cups rattled under the counter, as I made my way around the counters edge. I looked around to see the morning rush staring at me in judgment. Each face I passed was more painted with more intensity than the next. I began to breath heavier and my body broke out in a nervous sweat. _Why are they staring at me like that? _I stumbled to the front door as I unsuccessfully dodged the cloth.

"You're fired Nikita Jones! YA HEAR ME? FIRED! Don't eva show your face 'round here again!" She pointed an accusing finger towards the door as she planted her other hand on her hip. Her red acrylic nail glistened like daggers.

I was in shock. _How did I get here? _I grabbed my head and tried to piece together what happened before I woke up behind the counter.

I turned to leave and walked out onto the sunny street, as I abruptly bumped into someone, forcing them fall to the ground.

"What on Earth do you think you're doing child!?" Mrs. Bocswell shouted as she sat up. I staggered back in suprise. _I have never seen Mrs. Bocswell out of the apartment before._

"Oh I am SO Sorry!" I helped her up and looked over to the apartment building that was across the street, but instead of seeing the old run down structure, I was looking at an old hallway wall. I blinked her a couple times._ We aren't outside at all_, I thought_, we are in the hallway of my apartment building_? I stood there perplexed, as I studied the faded green wallpaper.

"No!" She shoved me off of her with more strength then I remembered her having, and my attention was pulled back towards her. "You are one of THE MOST _irresponsible_ tenants, that I have ever had!"

My stomach twisted even more._ What is going on? What have I done?_ My heart raced and my entire body felt ill. I hated upsetting people, and now I have gotten Rosie and Mrs. Bocswell upset; not to mention all of the people from the restaurant. My mind drifted back to all of their faces watching me, judging me, as I tried to leave. I feared their judgement, I feared what they thought of me.

"Miss Jones, I want you OUT of this apartment!"

"What? no.. Pplease, Mrs. Bocswell I'm so sorry! It will never happen again!"

I heard the slow creak of a door behind me, and it quickly slammed shut making the walls shake. It was so loud, that it made me flinch and close my eyes. In a split second, I was standing out on the street beside my bags. I frantically looked around my surroundings, searching for an explanation.

"What? How? I - "

Thunder rumbled in the sky as heavy rain began to fall. _I don't understand. I did't mean to upset them so bad. _I looked up to see the tall iron gates of The Meadow Springs Association Orphanage, and my heart had a flicker of hope. _Home._ It looked slightly more run down then when I left it a few weeks ago, but I remembered it quickly got that way when it was the slow adoption season: thats when they typically didn't have enough money to pay the maintenance crew. I shrugged it off, and grabbed my bags as I made my way down the cracked concrete path. The rain poured down like a heavy blanket and I could feel my hair begin to leech on my my cheeks.

I approached the door and knocked. After a moment I could hear it unlatch, then slowly groan open to reveal a slender woman who looked pale and sick; Miss Ketsel. _She looks so unwell. What happened while I was gone?_ I opened my mouth to speak, but Miss Ketsel spoke up first.

"Nikita, what are you doing here?" Her voice was soft and sad, but her face looked afraid. Her eyes shifted past me with a sort of unease, then searched me up and down.

"I've come home." I was completely soaked now. My body started to shiver slightly as I tried to hold in my tears. I felt a twinge of doubt as I slid some of my wet hair off of my face and smiled unconfortably.

"This is not your home. It never was." She backed away and slammed the door quicker then I could process what she had said. I stood there and shook some more, as I continued to stare at the door; my heart sank and the fear of rejection was completely consuming me.

_Everything I used to know, was a lie? What is happening? Where do I go now?_

I backed away and quickly turned to run. I had to leave, I had to get away; I had to get away from everything, from everyone. Voices and faces stun in my head; the rejection, the judgment, It was too much. The quicker I ran, the louder the voices got. Tears burned in my eyes and I reached my arms ahead if me reaching out for things that I can grab on to so that I could pull myself away quicker.

I could see something in the rain, but I couldn't make out what I was. I squinted my eyes to focus on it; it was coming towards me and it was fast. I blinked and it was right in front of me. I flinched and stopped dead in my tracks as I raised my hands to stop it. I gasped and flailed as something silky wrapped around me. It was a curtain. I flailed my arms and I shoved it aside. As I continued to walk away from it, I kept my head tuned and watched it calmly return to it's resting place.

_I know that curtain,_ I thought.

I bumped into a table and quickly turned my attention to see what was in front of me. Madam Moora sat with her hands folded together on the opposite side of the table from where I stood; her face was painted with disappointment.

My heart froze. _No, not Madam Morra. Please_. I feared what she would have to say to me. I feared what she would say about how I handled myself in Derry.

"You have forgotten everyting I taught you."

"Madam Moora, please." My voice quivered.

Her face twisted into an angry scowl as she lifted her hand to dismiss me.

"Madam Moora, no. I know you! You wouldn't do this!" I was pushed back out of the room and whipped around to face a window. Tears that burned in my eyes were now rolling down my cheeks, and my heart was breaking. I was so scared; I was so scared of what was going to happen next. I closed my eyes and lifted a shaky hand to my temple.

"Nikita?" A muffled voice called. I looked up to see Beverly outside of the window. Another familiar scene; I was on the bus leaving town.

"No." I whispered. "Beverly! NO!" The bus lurched forward as the air breaks squealed. I could see in her eyes that her heart was breaking. "Nononono. I'm not leaving!" I looked to the front of the bus and shouted, "Stop the bus! I don't want to go!" I looked back to Beverly and slammed my hands on the window. "Beverly! I'm not leaving you!" I beat on the window with my fists but nothing happened, the bus continued to crawl forward just like it did before.

She was almost out of my site. _No, not this time!_ I turned to run to the front on the bus as I yelled.

"Stop the - "

I froze to see Beverly in the bus with me; her eyes burned with hurt and anger.

"How DARE YOU!" She shouted.

Her rage made me fall backwards and I landed on something soft.

_The hospital bed?_

"How dare you leave ME!" She continued. "How dare you leave US!" Her arms raised as each of the Losers appeared at my bedside. Bill, Ben Richie, Eddie, Mike and Stan; their faces were froze in a look of disappointment.

"No. NO!" I sat up on the bed and crawled to the end of it, then gripped the end railing tight a pleaded. "Beverly I did this to save you! To save the all of you!"

"Well, a lot of good that did!" She spat.

Each of the Losers Club began to decay in front of me. The wind picked up and I watched in horror as they each began to writhe and curl in pain. Their skin peeled in large chunks and their eyes sink inward. Some of them were turning to dust, and others just oozed with puss.

I looked back to Beverly who was now inches from my face. Her eyes were sunken in and bugs began to crawl through the decaying holes on her skin.

"We were supposed to be a TEEEEAAAAMMM-AAAAAH!" She screeched as her head began to spin. Her neck twisted around and around as her skin stretched unnaturally.

My hands lifted up and gripped my ears, as my emotions flew out of control. My heart felt like it was going to explode. The wind and dust were suffocating, and I could barely hear myself think. My body became numb and I felt a deep crack inside of me.

_HOW CAN I FIX THIS!?_

"Bev." I pulled myself into a ball and hid my face as I whispered. "I'm sorry. I was just sso scared. I didn't know how to fix it… I-I still don't…"

The room grew quiet and calm as the wind that hurled around me began to slow down. It all felt so distant as I sat there shaking and sobbing for a little while.

"Pplease stop. I can't take it anymore." My hands were shaking uncontrollably, and my face was soaked from the tears that continued to stream down my cheeks. I barely had enough strength to look up. But I felt like I had to; my eyes darted around looking for the next thing to come. But nothing did.

I sat up and tried to dry my face as my sobs echoed forever in the nothingness that surrounded me.

_I am so scared to make the wrong move. No matter what I do, people begin to despise me. _

I held myself in a hug as more tears burned though my eyes and dripped off my chin. _I can't take it any more._ I could feel something inside of me crack slightly more, as if the pressure inside of me was too much. I couldn't tell what it was, but it felt like a wall in my heart was beginning to shift and shake.

A hand slowly lowed down to my line of vision. Unsure if it was real, I stared at it mesmerized as its long gentle fingers hovered there, waiting for me to reach out and grab them. I couldn't see past the hand, but _what else did I have to loose?_

I reached up and gripped them; they were warm and welcoming. The hand lightly closed around my fingers and gently pulled me to my feet; I could feel another hand wrap around my waist as support.

The hand belonged to a young and handsome man. His features were slightly unusual, but the softness in his eyes were inviting.

"Are you okay Miss?" His voice was warm and echoed slightly in the dark void that surrounded us. I looked deep in his eyes and they were vibrant green.

"Who are you?"

"My name is Bob Gray. I work at the circus just down the road." His head gestured to his right.

"Circus?" I looked past him to see an old dirt road surrounded by trees. Just past the trees were bright lights and a large, circus tent.

Startled by the sudden change in location, I looked around where we stood, but I didn't recognize anything. It was calm summers night; the crickets chirped to each other, and the stars twinkled in the dark blue blanket of the sky, casting down a slight glow on every surface.

_Where am I?_ I thought. It was as if my brain was wiped clean. All of my emotions were just shadows, and I couldn't recall anything that had just happened to me. My face felt wet and tired, so I wiped my cheeks with my sleeves as I sniffed slightly.

"Are you lost?" He asked. I looked back into his eyes. _Lost? _I had no idea where I was any more, nor did I have a clue what had just happened before he arrived; so I had to be.

"Yes." I replied.

"Would you like to come with me back to my caravan?"

I stood there and thought about it for a moment as I stared down the road. I felt so lightheaded; so broken.

"Yes."

Bob held out his arm to me like a gentleman, and I wrapped my forearm around his elbow. His long slender fingers reached over my hand and we began to walk towards the circus.

"What is your name?" He asked as we sauntered down the road.

"Nikita Jones." That seemed to be the only thing that I could remember before I saw his hand reach out to me.

"Nikita Jones." He repeated in a whisper, "What a pretty name."

I flinched a little at his remark. No one had ever spoke to me like this before, and it felt slightly unsettling. I had no idea how I got there, and I couldn't remember what happened before this man found me, no matter how hard I tried. My face felt so tired, _what happened to me before I saw his hand_?

"Miss Jones, were you scared?"

I looked up at his face and studied his soft features. His lips were slightly pushed out and his cheeks looked soft and round.

"Yes." I whispered, "Very."

Bob Gray continued to look off in the distance and slightly smiled as his grip held me tighter. I watched him closely, feeling completely at his mercy, for he was now the only person that I knew. I _had_ to trust him. A voice inside of me silently screamed, but I did not hear it. Instead, I let his man guide me further into the unknown.

When we arrived at the circus, it didn't look very busy, in fact, it looked almost empty. The grounds were pristine and the grass was a perfect shade of green; everything looked as if it was open for business, but no one was there to run the games that that stood in rows of glittering lights. No people were walking around the grounds, and I didn't see any performers through the big door of the main tent. I got lost in thought staring over at the big top and felt a slight tug on my arm.

"Do you _smell_ the circus?"

"Yes." The tantalizing smells of popcorn, cotton candy and mini doughnuts filled the air. I could hear crowds of people and the sounds of the show circled all around us; the crowed cheered, children laughed, and a clown honked his horn. I looked around and searched for the people, but could still see no one.

"Here we are."

I turned to see an old circus wagon with the words, _Pennywise The Dancing Clown_, painted on the side of it. I blinked hard a few times as a faint memory teased my senses as Bob cleared his throat. I looked back to his comforting gaze as he opened the little green side door. It slowly creaked open to reveal a comfortable little room that was full of neat little nick-knacks like silks, cantles and trinkets. It had an old faded couch on one end and a tiny kitchen area on the other.

Bob reached down and held my hand as he guided me up the stairs and gently closed the door behind us. It all felt very dream like as I floated into the wagon; the sounds of the outside world outside were now a mere muffle from the inside of his cozy home.

"Miss Jones, would you like a tea?" He clasped his hands together and leaned forward slightly as I sat down on the old tattered couch.

"Um. Yes, please."

Bob Gray smiled warmly and nodded, as he turned to start the kettle. I studied him as he walked around the small space gathering tea cups and saucers.

He looked almost seemed too tall for this little space. As he wondered and spun in his tiny home, he bumped into a few of the pots and pans that hung from the ceiling, he automatically lifted his hands to stop them from clattering together as he continued like nothing had ever happened. It was sweet how delicate he was with them. His movement flowed so smoothly, that it almost looked like it was a dance. I smiled at him, as his cute awkwardness warmed the air around us.

The handsome carny was wearing dark pants that were being held up by black suspenders. His white undershirt was tucked in neatly and his hair was short and slicked back. Every so often his bangs would fall forward and dangle in front of his forehead, but he would reach up and slick them back every time they fell.

He had a very slender figure and his skin looked so soft. I felt my heart tug towards him as I slowly stood; feeling the need to get closer to him. I walked over to him in a daze and wrapped my arms around his waist. He froze; almost as if he had never been touched before. I buried my head in his back and he had the faintest smell of popcorn that lingered on his clothes.

"Please don't leave me." I whispered.

I could feel his arms slowly drop to his sides as he stood up straighter. He felt unsure about the interaction, but I didn't care. I was feeling something deep inside that I didn't understand, and I needed some comfort.

Bob raised one of his arms and delicately spun around to face me. His eyes filled with an emotion that I couldn't read. He slowly leaned forward as if to hug me, but he hesitated and held me back slightly; his long fingers wrapped around my shoulders.

We both stared at each other in silence for a while. His bright green eyes read right through me like I was a tissue paper; tin and delicate. I tried to fall into his arms again, but he held me tight in place; I began to feel slightly concerned.

"Bob?"

His kind face looked confused and angry, but he didn't look angry at me. He looked like he was angry at himself.

"Bob?"

"No." He backed away from me and quickly turned away, as he leaned his hands on the counter. His elbows bent a little as he quivered and spat. "_Pennywise_."

That name pierced though me like a dagger.

"_What?_" My previous emotions began to consume me like a flood, and the voice that was silently screaming inside of me howled in my soul.

"Pennywise!" He shouted. He spun back to face me; he was now wearing the clowns costume, and I remembered everything. It hit me like a brick wall.

"You." I staggered backwards and bumped into a dresser. "No."

"Yessss." He hissed as his large gloved hands raised and reached to the back of his head as he began to peel Bob Grays face off. His hair sprung out from under his flesh mask as clotted blood snapped like elastics on his skin. "Fear me!" He grumbled.

I felt something inside me crack some more. The wall inside my heart began to crumble and shake again.

"_You_? You are _nothing_ but a MONSTER!" I shouted as I shoved over the table that sat beside the dresser. "You have taken EVERYTHING FROM ME!" My eyes burned as tears of anger began run down my face. "YOU HIDE BEHIND YOUR ILLUSIONS AND DESTROY EVERYTHING THAT IS GOOD!" The wall had now fallen down, and something felt empty within me. "AND I HAVE HAD ENOUGH!"

I ran towards him and grabbed some scissors that sat on a small wooden crate; I had never felt so much power before, and it was liberating. I jumped at him and thrust the scissors into his chest as he burst into grey dust. Shocked, I released the scissors and backed away as they fell to the ground. Suddenly everything around me also began to burst into dust; some clouds brown, and others green. I watched in surprise as the dust whirled around me and eventually dispersed into the black void.

I found myself once again standing alone in the darkness; my heart was racing.

"WHY DO YOU ALWAYS RUN FROM ME!?" My voice echoed and faded into the darkness. I kept spinning around hoping to see him again; I wanted to end him for torturing me, for torturing my friends and for killing innocent people in Derry. "WHERE ARE YOU!?" I stood there and panted for a moment, the rage bubbled up inside me and I could no longer contain it. "GAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!"

But nothing came and no one answered; just the echoes of my anger retuned back to me. I screamed out in rage again as I crouched down as I held my head tight between my hands as I felt the dust, from the crumbled wall inside of me, begin to settle.


	17. Chapter 17 - A Deal Shattered

Chapter 17 - A Deal Shattered

"Step right up Beverly, step right up! Come change, come float. You'll laugh, you'll cry. You'll cheer! You'll diiee." A small crackled voice echoed in my ears followed by a light jolly tune. "Introducing PEnnywISE, The DANcing clOWN! HAhahaha!" The laughter morphed and cracked as the music slowly stopped.

Bang! Something popped and I was pulled from my dreamy state. My arms shifted and I could hear shackles and chains rattling across the wood floor. The room looked red as I heard the clattering of chains unraveling, as large drawbridge like door fell open just a few feet from me. I opened my eyes slightly to see that I was shackled and chained to a hook, that was connected to thick drawbridge door chains. The hook raised with the doors movement and it quickly tugged at my arms; forcing me to stand.

Bang! Pop!

_Fireworks?_ I lazily looked to my left to see Pennywise standing there looking out the large doorway with a less than welcoming look on his face. The carnival music was unbearably loud, sending throbbing waves of pain through my head.

THUD! THUD! THUD! The room shook with every thump, and I tried to make out what was happening. _Is he dancing? _I thought to myself. I could see his legs kicking up with beat of the music and I closed my eyes and turned away in pain.

I was relying on the shackles around my wrists to hold me up right, which began to make my finger tips start to tingle. My head hung between my arms and I was trying my best to regain feeling in my legs. I felt completely drained. _What happened to me? _

The thumping of Pennywise's dance moves stopped and I could now hear him yelling and taunting someone outside of the red room. I shifted my leg and it kicked a small glass vial. It clanked and slowly rolled away a few feet from me before it got caught in a divot of a wood plank. My vision was slowly retuning to me; it almost looked like my little bottle of vanilla liquid.

_Wait, it is my little bottle of vanilla liquid._ My eyes shot open. _Beverly!_

It was clear now, I could hear her struggling and fighting against Pennywise just outside the door. _That bastard!_ I tugged at the chains, but they wouldn't budge. I looked up to see the hook at the end of my chains hung up on the large chain links of door. I leaned on the large chain to support my weight and tried to wave the slack on my shackles to get the hook free. The chain rippled and clattered together; I watched desperately as the hook swung and shifted. _Almost.._ I used everything I had and flicked the chain once more. The wave traveled up the links and finally swung the hook free.

I fell to the floor, no longer having the support of the larger chains to hold me up, and landed on top of a couple of tea cups and saucers. I watched them roll and clatter, thinking back to _Bob Gray_, remembering for a second the kindness he had shown me. _We were never able to have that tea… Was he a figment of my imagination? Or was he Pennywise?_ His green eyes lingered in my head; I could still feel his large gentle hands lift me from the darkness, and for a moment, I wanted nothing more the to stay with Bob Gray forever.

I heard Beverly grunt ouside, and I shoved the thought aside. _I have to save Beverly. _I grabbed the vanilla liquid and stuffed it in my pocket as I crawled to the entrance of the big door. The heavy chains dragged across the wood floor with every pull from my body. I finally made it to the lip of the entrance and looked out to see Pennywise holding Beverly up in the air as she punched and kicked at him.

"Beverly.." I gasped, but my voice was too low, and neither of them turned to look at me. "Bev-erly."

Beverly coughed and gripped his arms as she gritted her teeth and angrily stared the clown.

"I am not afraid of you." She spat. I could see Pennywise's head till down before reefing her close to smell her. A part of me twinged inside._ Jealousy?_

Pennywise recoiled and sneezed, his bells jingled as he tossed his head from side to side. He looked infuriated and pulled her close to his face.

"You will be." He whispered. Beverly's eyes widened a bit as his head tilted back.

I pulled myself onto a little stage that the drawbridge door had made and tried to speak again.

"Nno."

But it was no use. I felt so weak.

His mouth was split wide open and a light was beginning to shine on Beverly's face. I could see her getting lost in them; her grip on his hands loosened as her eyes glazed over a dull grey.

I could feel the strength in my arms and legs returning to me as I watched her slowly float into the air. Pennywise's hands delicately released her, like a butterfly to the wind. Part of me craved to be there in Beverly's position; I wanted him to be reaching up towards me with his long gentle gloved fingers. _No, I hate him. _I forced my attention back to Beverly.

_Beverly.. What has he done to you?_

"NO!"

My voice violently echoed through the dark cavern and it _happily_ startled the clown. His head spun to me as his face pieced itself back together with a devilish smile.

"Ohho. You're awake." His voice cooed as he lowered his hands.

"Beverly. What have you done to her?" I clumsily jumped off of the stage and slid down the small pile of toys and garbage; my chain hooked on random toys as I yanked it along behind me. "Why did you bring her here?"

I stumbled towards her and shoved Pennywise aside. I reached up to grab her, but the clown reached forward and grabbed my arm, spinning me into his chest.

"No, no, no. We don't touch." He teased.

"What have you done to her!?" I punched at his chest as I tried to turn back to her.

"Hmhhmhmhm.. She's in the deadlights _now_."

"THIS WASN'T PART OF OUR DEAL!"

"OUr DEal?" He thew his head back and laughed. "OUr deal was that you would exchange yourself for the _all_ losers. You never said I couldn't take _just_ _ONE_."

His voice echoed in my ears like a bad memory. I felt weak and dizzy again, as I thought back to that moment in my apartment.

* * *

"I want to - make a d-deal. T-take my life in, exchange for the losers safety."

"All of them?"

"Yes, all of them."

"Deal."

* * *

The world spun quickly around me. _What have I done? _My hands reached up and grabbed the sides of my head to stop the spinning. His grip on me released and I turned away from him.

"But you said.. You said.."

"I say a lot of things… You stupid girl. YoU tHouGHT YoU COuld OutsmarT MEE!?" His voice deepened into a grumble.

I turned to see him morph and spit; his skin bubbled and shook as dark hairy claws ripped though his gloves. I stumbled backwards and bumped into the heap of toys behind me as a box of matches and a candle fell out at my feet.

Pennywise was exploding with anger as he was changing into something else. I didn't hesitate, I grabbed the candle and matches as I ran around the pile of toys and searched for something else I could use to protect myself.

My eyes fell on a little beginners herb and plant box. I reached forward to open it and to my surprise there was growth inside; dill, poppy, fern, marjoram and a few others. My head spun through Madam Mooras spell book. _I know these plants._

Pennywise's voice roared and echoed. The walls shook, and little pebbles from the cavern walls fell down into the puddles on the ground. It made me jump and look up; I gasped as I noticed dozens of bodies floating above the pile of toys and garbage. I studied each of them as they swirled and hovered. I could see a few were missing parts of their clothes, while others where missing limbs. A small boy with short dark hair and a rain jacket was floating closest to me, he appeared to have had his arm torn off; another girl looked to be missing parts of her face while the next child had no head at all. I began to get lost in each of their stories when a familiar shape caught my eye; the boy from the bus stop. My heart sunk as his body floated above me; his neck twisted completely around, looking down on me; the light that was once in his eyes, was now faded and grey.

My eyes burned and I wiped my tears away quickly. _I have got to get Beverly out of here_. I grabbed the plants and scooped up some of the puddles water beside me in a pink plastic teacup. Then I ground them together the best I could with a rock; _The spell invisibility_. I didn't have all of the actual ingredients, but most of them should do something. I could hear Pennywise's heavy breathing from around the corner getting closer.

"Nikita JOnes." He growled, "Where are you?" His giant steps made the water around me ripple.

The ingredients were mixed, now for the candle. I grabbed the old used candle and put it in front of me as I reached for the matches. I pulled one match out, and quickly slid it against the side of the package. Nothing happened. _Damn it, its wet!_ I threw that one aside and tried the next match. Nothing. _FUCK!_

"WWherrrre are youuu Nikita Jones?" Pennywise was slowly getting closer. I could see the top of his shadow sliding along the ground and I panicked. I grabbed all of my stuff and ran as quietly as I could further around the pile. My chains rattled slightly as I raised my arms higher off the ground to the wouldn't drag.

Once I was hidden again, I placed it all down and tried another match. Nothing. I chucked it aside and tried another. Nothing. I could feel my heart racing.

"I had hoped to keep you as a little pet.. Your ssseassssoning worked out sssoOo well.. But, you are quickly becoming a nuisance." His voice growled and grumbled.

Spark!

A match finally lit! I cupped my hand around it and lowered it down the candle.

In a fit of rage, Pennywise struck the pile of toys and ripped a chunk of the pile out causing the whole thing to rattle as a chunk of it collapsed. A plush doll fell from above me, and landed in the puddle beside the candle and I wasn't quick enough to dodge it; the splash snuffed out the match. I almost cried out anger, but I kept quiet. My silent screams bubbled deep inside me as I bit my lip and held by breath. _Fuck, fuck fuck fuck!_ I grabbed the doll and flung it across the room.

Pennywise froze as the doll made a splash in the water and I could see his giant shadow freeze.

"I can smell you Joness.. I can taste you're sssuculent fearrr.."

My stomach twisted inside of me, and I wanted to cry and vomit at the same time. He was right, I was letting my fear take over me. I slid my hands over my head and drew in a beep breath. I calmly reached for the matches once again.

Flick, Spark!

_YES! _I cried inside. The candle lit and I held the cup over the flame. I could see his giant shadow approaching the corner and I closed my eyes as chanted some words under my breath.

"You can't hide forever Jones."

I could feel the sweat on my forehead drip past my eye brow and down my jaw. I quickly bowed my head and drank the potion. I was not smooth; it was warm and very bitter. I choked it down and opened my eyes to see five long clawed fingers emerge slowly from the darkness and grip on to the edge of the toy pile. I stood there frozen, allowing my eyes to follow the large hairy arm that followed it out of the darkness.

My heart was pounding, and I turned to hide around the next corner; I wasn't about to test out the makeshift potion. I tucked myself in tightly to the next edge as I watched a large hairy werewolf step forward; the darkness of the shadows poured down his body like a water fall and faded at his feet as he approached my candle. His muscular body and long limbs pulsed with strength and rage.

His eyes flicked around the little cove, and he began to smell the air. He paused and smelled again; this time deeper. His eyes flashed open in a panic.

"NIKITA! Where are you!?" He roared. _It worked, _I thought, _he can't smell me! He can't find me!_ I turned to run, but the puddles splashed and my chains rattled; I froze and winced as my joy quickly faded away. I could hear him quiet his growls.

"Shit." I stood there, unable to move, and quickly looked down at the water around my feet as it slowly settled.

I gently turned to see if the werewolf could see me. My heart froze as I looked up to the upper corner of the toy pile. I could see two lights hovering in the darkness like lightning bugs. Pennywise stood there in his werewolf form and glared at me from the shadows.

He waited there a few seconds and growled under his breath; savouring the moment. I felt as if I was completely out of options, and helplessly watched his body shake with fury.

He launched himself over the heap and landed inches in front of me. I panicked and turned to run, but he launched off the ground and slid into my path; cutting me off.

In shock I slipped backwards and landed on my wrists. I turned to run again but he darted forward and reached one of his large hairy clawed hands out to grab me. He gripped my right arm and gave it a jerk; slicing my skin as I flipped to face him. I cringed in pain as blood spilled on the ground at my side.

He lurched forward; his lips curled back in a snarl as his teeth got closer to my throat. I began to doubt the talisman and the safety of my magic; he seemed be able to power through all of it. _Maybe this was his game the whole time. _I felt like such an idiot as I closed my eyes and accepted my gruesome death.

He stopped.

My eyes opened, seeing the beast back off me just a little bit, coughing as spitting. _There is hope_, I thought to myself. As I slid myself out from under him, I felt a sharp poke in my pocket and looked down to it; my vanilla bottle was shattered. _That's why he backed off! _I reached in my pocket and pulled out little chunks and shards of glass, and tossed them to the side. The side of my pasts were soaked with the vanilla liquid, and I looked up to see the beast desperately trying to get the overwhelming smell away from his nose.

The werewolf was on a rampage. He punched and clawed the ground around him, as he kicked up water and rocks. He roared in frustration and bit the ground where I was once laying. He froze, realizing that I had slipped out of reach. His lips curled back revealing his drooling mouth and dagger like fangs. They glistened in the faint light as blood dripped from his gums. He leaned back to prepare to pounce again.

We both froze, waiting for the other to make a move. I quickly tucked my arms and rolled down the slight hill as he launched off the ground. His fangs sank deep into my ankle, as I screamed. _This was such a mistake_, I grabbed a few loose rocks in my hand and threw them at him, as I dug my fingers into the ground and kicked as hard as I could.

He began to drag me back up to his wagon at the top of the toy heap. The pain in my ankle eased, and instead of claws, I could feel a hand. I looked up to see the clown once again. He grunted as he dragged me back up onto the stage of his trailer.

With one final tug, he threw me up on the stage. I felt the hard impact of the wood floor and my eyes flew open to see Pennywise hovering above me. My mind raced.

_How am I going to get out of this?_

I tried to struggle but he stepped on my chain, pinning my arms down. He was laughing and crying all at the same time. The site if him loosing his mind above was terrifying. His orange hair looked slightly stringy, as he tossed his head back with joy.

"UUhhhuh-huh-huh!" He cackled as he shook his head spraying saliva everywhere.

His large gloved hand reached down and gripped my neck. He slowly squeezed as I began to gasp for air. His face went dead serious, and I could feel his saliva dripping down my arm.

"You thought you could face me!?" He spat. "Deceive me!?.. You can not handle my power-"

I pulled on my chains and kicked my feet but it was no use. The saliva that dripped down my right arm, was sliding under my shackle, and I began to twist and pull it. I could feel my air way close under his grip, and I used everything I had to try to pull my arm free. I slipped out and I grabbed the talisman around my neck, and slammed it down on the hand that wrapped around my neck. It smoked and sizzled as it burned though his glove and melted his skin. The smell of burning flesh made me gag as I felt the pressure ease around my neck, as Pennywise cried out in pain and released his grip.

I peeled the talesman off his hand and sat up as I pulled the necklace over my head and jammed it into his forehead. It melted his skin like butter, and I could feel it sinking through his skull. I watched in horror as white fleshy make up dripped down my arm and to the ground. It burned as it slid into my cuts, and I gasped in pain and pulled away.

Pennywise swayed and staggered backwards as he cupped his hands around the hole in his head. His hands were now soaked with brain tissue and melted skin and bone. He turned and jumped off of the stage and landed beside the nearest puddle, then slammed himself face down into the shallow water.

_Now is my chance!_

I scrambled down the other side of the stage, and slid down the pile of toys as I peeled Pennywise's melted skin out of the cuts on my arm.

"Beverly!" I cried as I approached her. But she didn't respond.

Her face was frozen in a neutral position and her grey eyes gazed slightly upwards. I reached up to grab her but she was floating in the air just slightly out of my reach. I looked around for something to stand on, but there was nothing there. I jumped towards her and touched her shoe but my grip slipped. I jumped again and reached up with both hands and hooked the top part of her foot.

She was heavy, yet light. It was almost like she was stuck in the air with invisible webbing. I reached up and grabbed her wrist, and slowly yanked her down. Her feet were almost touching the group when I heard sobbing.

I paused and looked over the puddle where Pennywise had disappeared. The clown was hunched over, in the ankle deep a puddle. His back was facing me, but I could see steam floating away from his face in the faint light, as if someone just threw water onto a fire. It was quiet for a moment, and then his sobs returned.

I stood there watching him cry alone in the darkness. _this has to be a trap_, I thought.

"How could you hurt P-Pennywise?" He sobbed, "I only wanted a f-friend."

I quietly turned away to pull Beverly towards the open pipe across the cavern, but I heard a familiar voice that made me stop.

"Nikita." Bob Gray cooed.

I froze. My brain was trying to fight back the urge to turn to him, but I couldn't resist. I looked back to see Bob standing there in the clown suit. His face now had a giant gapping hole in his forehead. His skin was barely holding together as he reached up and peeled the wound off like latex make up.

"Nikita, don't go. You were happy here." He stepped towards me with his arms wide open. "Please stay."

"No. You're not real." I turned back to Beverly and pushed her towards the pipe. Bob appeared at my side, wearing he same tucked in white under shirt and dark suspenders that I met him in. He held his hands out to stop me, and it worked.

"But what you felt was."

I gasped slightly and looked in Bobs eyes. They were kind and welcoming. I could see them searching though me for some emotion. I remembered feeling a desire to be close to him, but he was not real, he was Pennywise the whole time.

_He was Pennywise the whole time..._

"This is just a trap." I shoved him aside as I pulled Beverly past him. "And you no longer have any power over me."

His face looked hurt but I didn't care. I was done. I no longer feared him. I felt dead inside.

"Nikita stop. If you take her out of here in that state, she will die."

I grabbed the pipes edge and looked forward into the darkness. _He's lying._

"And it is the truth." He continued. "If you wait a little while, she will come back."

"You're lying." I spat.

"Nikita, It's me, Bob." He raised his hands and backed away. "No tricks." I watched him as he turned towards his wagon at the top of the pile. "Now, how about that tea I promised?"

I stood there, unsure of what I should do. I looked at Beverly and then looked down the dark pipe. _What if she does die?_ I looked back to Bob, who was now standing on the stage.

"What do you say Miss Jones? I am just asking for ten minutes of your time."

My hand started to feel tired holding Beverly's wrist, so I shifted to hold her waist. I felt something cold on her back, and looked behind her. It was my Bowie knife.

_Beverly must have seen this in my apartment and come to save me. Maybe he didn't bring her down here._

I pulled the knife from her belt and slit it back its sheath that still hung from my hip. I looked up to Bob Gray as he smiled warmly. I gripped the handle of the knife tight and bit my lip.

"Alright, ten minutes."


	18. Chapter 18 - Ten Minutes

Chapter 18 - Ten Minutes

The cavern was damp and cold, but I barely noticed; I was too busy keeping an eye on Bob Gray. He looked delighted when I agreed to give him ten minutes, and he practically skipped to the back of his wagon to grab some chairs.

I stood there still holding onto Beverly's waist. _What am I doing?_ I thought. I turned my head to look down the dark pipe to freedom and gripped the handle of my knife tight. _He no longer has a hold on you, _I told myself,_ And if he tries anything, I will be ready this time._ I turned back to the stage and glared up at it with determination as I walked Beverly closer to the toy pile. I loosened my grip on her dress. She slowly lifted back into the air; I hesitated and looked up to her. Her face was frozen in such a solemn and lost state: her lips were slightly parted, and her eyes looked distant and grey.

"She won't float away." I jumped at the sudden sound of Bob Gray's voice at my side and lost my grip on Beverly. Her body lifted into the air and my heart jumped into my throat. I reached up quickly to grab her, but Bobs warm hands wrapped around my fingers before I could teach her. "She will only hover so high." I lowered my hand as the two of us watched Beverly hover in the air, this time within reach. Bob released my hand and cleared his throat as he held his arm out to me, "Shall we?"

Bob stood there just as he did when I fist saw him. I once fell weak into his welcoming arms; but now things were different. I said nothing to him; all I did was stare angrily deep into his eyes. His chivalrous gestures and calm alluring voice had no effect on me this time. It was strange. I took in a deep breath, and turned towards the old circus caravan at the top of the toy pile.

_The moment his guard is down, I will end him._ I thought as I reluctantly made my way up a narrow path. I pulled myself onto the stage as Bob trailed close behind me, searching for anything he could do to assist me, but I shrugged him off and sat down in one of the chairs he had delicately set out for us. I could see Bob searching for something else that he could do for me, and he looked down at my bloody ankle.

"Would you like me to bandage that for you?" He asked sincerely.

"No." My short response seemed to surprise him, and I could see his lip twitch. _Interesting_, I thought. The kettle started to whistle inside of his wagon and he jumped up with excitement as he ran to the back.

"Ah, the tea is ready!" He hummed.

Bob was only gone for a moment as the cave fell dead silent, but I kept my eye on where he had disappeared; my right hand was still tightly wrapped around my knife ready for action, and my left fiddled with the chain that was will around my wrist.

I could hear the slight clanking of tea cups and saucers. My shoulders relaxed slightly, and I looked back to Beverly. _This feels wrong,_ I thought, _I'm so stupid_. I glanced back to the wagon. _I'm just going to take Beverly and get the heck out of here._ I stood up quickly to leave while Bob was distracted, but as I turned he was standing there in front of me.

"_Fuck_.." I cursed under my breath as I stumbled back into my chair.

Bob stood there with a villainous look spread across his face; his green eyes each were slightly kinked in opposite directions, as he tilted his head and smiled.

"Where are you going?"

"No where. I - Um." I felt scattered for a moment, searching for words. I looked down to my knife and my hand was no longer holding it. _When did I let it go?_ I wrapped my hand around the hilt and looked back up to Bob. His smile seemed more sincere and his eyes were once again lined up.

"Here is your tea." His long fingers delicately held the tea cup saucer out as he gestured for me to take it. I hesitantly reached out and grabbed it with my free hand, and then slowly sat back down in my chair.

Bobs face glowed with happiness for a moment as he watched me place the saucer on my lap. He turned and sat in his chair as well; reaching for his tea cup. I stared at him confused.

_Why is he like this? How can he just flick a switch like that? _I sat back in my chair and absorbed the situation. I thought back to the night I first saw this form of Pennywise. It seemed so dream like then. _Isn't this what I wanted? _I asked myself. _To have a tea with Bob?_ It was what I wanted, but there was something wrong this time. Like there was a grey filter over everything I could see.

I watched Bob as he looked out over his cave with pride, much like how a farmer would look out to his freshly worked land after harvest. Part of me expected to be lost in this moment and just allow myself to be consumed by his handsome frame, but the emotion never came.

It was a strange sensation; waiting and _wanting _to feel something, and never it arrives. It was like is was falling and could see the ground rushing towards me; I would brace myself for impact but the ground would never touch me.

_Why did I want to feel something? Why do I miss that feeling?_

"How is your tea, Nikita?" Bob looked at me and I felt a jolt of shock as I quickly looked down at my tea.

"Hot." I replied. I felt a twist in my gut as my checks got warm. I froze, _what kind of answer was that!?_

Bob looked happy with my reply as he looked back out to where Beverly was floating. There was a glimmer in his eye as he turned his head; it was different then before. It was the look of someone getting their way; the look of someone winning a game.

_WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME!? I'm letting him play his game again! Frick, this was a mistake. Everything I do is a mistake! How am I going to get out of here now?_ An idea came to me quickly. _No more running; it doesn't work. I will just have to beat him at his own game if I am going to win this._

_ Bob __IS__ Pennywise,_ I told myself as I gripped my knife tight.

"You know," Bob said calmly, "ever since I first laid eyes on you that night, I knew you were special."

_Don't loose focus Nikita, it's just his game._

"And I knew that somehow you, and I were meant to me."

_Bob IS Pennywise,_ I repeated in my head, _don't listen to him._

"You mean the day." I interrupted.

Bob looked over to me slightly startled, "Pardon?"

"You mean the day. The first time you saw me was during the day." I watched him look at me completely confused. "Or do you mean the time that you attacked me in my apartment?" I spat.

"What? No, the first time I saw you, you were lost on the road side nor far from my caravan." He laughed nervously as I stared into his eyes. I firmly held my tea cup straight out in front of me.

"Don't lie to me." I said.

"Lie to you? Nikita -"

I dumped my tea on the ground in front of me. Bobs face looked surprised again. His eyes flicked yellow for a second, but quickly went back to green. _I know that's not the real you… _ I thought, _show yourself._

"Oh Nikita! You spilt your tea! Here I will grab you a new one!" Bob stood up and reached for my cup, but I flicked it over the stage edge before he could touch it. He froze and stared at the cup as it shattered below us. I could see a slight twitch in the corner of his mouth. He blinked and gathered his composure; he smiled and took in a deep breath. "And you dropped your cup. That's _okay_. Just take mine." He offered out his tea and I back handed it out of his grip; it too fell and smashed on the ground. Bob stared at it on he ground and it seemed to bother him more. His neck pulsed and his eyes flicked yellow again. He clenched his jaw and took another deep breath. "If you didn't want tea, then you could have just told me."

"Give it up already Clown." I said coldly.

"Nikita, I told you before. No tricks - "

"No. I want to see Pennywise."

"Nikita please -"

"What!? The clown doesn't want to play?" I stood up and shoved the chair aside, "Come on_ Pennywise_! Let's see you!"

"Nikita -" Bob looked like he was somewhere between drowning and rage. His face began to morph and glitch.

"Come on! Show me your true self! I know it's you! No more hiding, you coward!" I pulled my knife from its sheath and swung it in my hand, "I want to _play_ with the _clown_!"

"You - Yyou want to see my t-true selfff!?" Bobs voice deepened and rumbled. His body spasmed and his clothes began to change to a grey colour. I held my knife tightly ready to stab him in the heart. His body flickered a little to the left and then glitches into thin air.

I crouched readying myself for him to come from anywhere. His laughter burst out from behind me and a spun around quickly.

"You couldn't handle my true self!" Pennywise teased, "THIS is all your little brain can handle!"

"No more talking! Let's end this!"

Pennywise laughed and thrusted himself towards me from behind as quick as lighting. I immediately slashed the air around me and I heard a grunt of pain. I paused to see Pennywise holding his bloody arm and looked back to me in surprise.

"Why do you always have to ruin a good thing?" He whimpered, "Don't you see everything that I am doing for you?"

"You have done nothing for me! Everything you do leads me down a path that I don't want go!"

"But I've done so much more."

"Like what? The illusions? The torture? The dead lights?" I shouted as I pointed to Beverly, "Taking my best friend? Is that what you have done for me? Is _that _what you did to ME!? Did you put me in the dead lights too!?"

Pennywise looked at me with a slight gloss in his eyes.

"That is not what Pennywise did to you.."

"Psh - "

"Pennywise would never do that to you."

"I don't believe anything you say any more." I walked towards him as he backed away slightly, cowering and still holding his injured arm. I made sure to get as close to his face as possible. I could smell his sweet popcorn scent, but I was tasting freedom, and nothing could stop me now. I looked deep into his yellow and red eyes, and could see him struggling with his next move. I finally had the upper hand. I raised my knife as he flinched and whimpered. _Maybe it would be a better punishment to let him suffer alone, _I thought, s_uch a sad creature._ I lowered my knife and shoved it back into its sheath. "You are hardly worth my time." I shoved him with my shoulder and jumped off of the stage.

Pennywise looked defeated. He scrabbled for words but could only stutter as he began to sob. I slid down the toy pile and walked over to Beverly. _Victory._

"I'm taking Beverly, I _know_ she's not going to die! And we are leaving town as soon and she wakes up. And you - you will have nothing. You're just going to sit down here and rot alone! You have tortured me for the last time! And I will never think about _Pennywise_ the dancing clown again!"

"N-Nikita," he sobbed, "don't leave me.. I don't want to be al-lone again."

I ignored his pleads and cries as I reached up towards Beverly.

"What about how _you_ feel?"

_Don't look back..._

"That longing inside.."

I thought back to all of those times that I had odd sensation. I wanted to be closer to him. I wanted him to hold me. I hugged him once and asked him,_ 'Please don' leave me.'_ I gritted my teeth. _It's just his game. _I wrapped my hand around Beverly's ankle.

"You lonngg to be with mee.."

_Just keep going.._

"YoU nEEd meee…" He hissed.

_Ignore him!_

"And I NEed yOu Nikita."

My heart had a small kick. _He is lying._

"I will not survive without yOu."

"_Good._." I scoffed under my breath. _It's just a game_, I repeated to myself,_ and you are finally winning. Just a little further._

"Nikita! You're breaking my heart!" He fell down to his knees as I pulled on Beverly's leg. I felt slightly weaker. _Is this what it feels like to win? Leaving someone behind broken like this?_

"Don't make me say it.."

_Am I actually breaking his heart?_

"I love you, Nikita Jones."

I hesitated for a moment. There was that spark.

"You what?" I turned to him.

Pennywise stayed silent and was still slouched down on his knees; he didn't lift his head.

"What did you say?" I repeated.

"She didn't deserve it." His voice cracked as he held his hand out and opened it. In the centre of his palm was a small vial. It rolled out of his hand and bounced down the toy pile, then came to a rolling stop at me feet. It was another vial of vanilla liquid. "It wasn'T hers to pOssesss," he continued, "this is your smell, not hers."

I stood there perplexed. The sound of my heart began to throb in my ears as the world quickly spun around us.

"I have craved you, Nikita Jones." His voice depend as he looked up and began to stand.

I knew that he had said that before, but I couldn't take my eyes off of him. I felt faint.

"I couldn't bring myself to consume you.. I trIED." His voice sounded more sure of what to say as he slowly made his way down the toy pile. "I have felT ALone Ffforr thOUsands of yEArs, Feeling ONly HungER." He slid in front of me and reached for my hand. "Tell mE yOU Will stAy Miss JOnes."

He quickly pulled my waist in towards him. I flinched, letting go of Beverly to brace my hands firmly on his chest. I felt like that was my final attempt at resistance. His eyes were calm as he smiled. We both hesitated. My body had shivers jolting all over my skin. _This is it. This is what I have been searching for.. _I relaxed my arms and allowed my body to rest against his. Nothing else seemed to matter. He was warm. I leaned forward slightly, giving into his strength as my breath quivered. I was speechless.

I looked down to his chest, but he quickly guided my chin back up to face him. His gloved hand felt warmer than before. It slid down my jaw like and around to the back of my neck. I felt myself gravitating towards him. I let go of my hesitation as he pulled me in for a kiss.

Sparks of excitement exploded with in my heart as his lips pushed against mine. My hand raised and slid through his soft hair. It felt as though the moment would never end. We pushed against each other slightly, as he held me tighter; slightly lifting me off the ground.

The rush slowed, and he lowered me back down as he slowly pulled away. The kiss was over. I felt weak in his arms.

_What does this mean for us now?_ I thought. His eyes looked down and his face began to look solemn.

"Nikita."

"Yes?"

"Your ten minutes is up."

My smile disappeared and my heart froze, "What?"

Just then I could hear the sound of other voices. I turned my head to look over to the big drain pipe.

"Bill!" I could hear, "Bill! Come back!" _Richie?_ It was the Losers club. I began to panic. _He lied to me, AGAIN!_

"YOU LIED TO ME YOU SNAKE!" I shoved him away from me, "YOU WERE JUST WAITING FOR THEM TO COME TO YOU!"

"Oh Nikita," He giggled, "not everything _IS_ planned.." He looked up with a hideous smile. _He won again._

I turned to shout out to the Losers, but Pennywise grabbed the chain that still dangled from my left arm and yanked me down; I gasped as I hit the ground.

"OHOHOHOH! THIS IS GOING TO BE SO MUCH FUN!" He laughed hysterically.

"NO!" I shouted as I turned to warn the others, "RUN IT'S A TRA- !" Something wrapped around my mouth and silenced me. I quickly looked back to Pennywise; who's arm was now reaching towards me, morphed into a long black slug like vine. It felt cold and wet on my face. I didn't hesitate to pull my knife from its sheath to slice it. The pressure on my face released as the end of it fell to the ground. It slapped around beside me as I braced myself to stand.

"Gah!" Pennywise hissed as his arm recoiled and writhed in pain; dark blood and slime spewed from its severed end. I tried to run away but my legs were slipping on the slime covered ground.

Pennywise growled and yanked me towards his caravan with my chain. His arm was quickly healing as we made it to the stage top of the stage once again. I screamed at the top of my lungs in hopes the Losers would hear.

"Hahaha! They CAN'T hear Your CRIES!" Pennywise cackled. His hand reached out and grabbed the shoulder of my sweater. I reached up to stab him with my knife but he knocked it from my grip. I could hear it falling of the edge of the stage and getting lost amongst the toys and garbage.

"no.." I said breathlessly. I could feel my strength leaving me again as Pennywise lifted a trap door of the floor of his caravan.

"Now try not to make too much of a fuss while _Daddy_ goes to work."

I gripped my hands around his wrist as he chucked me down the hole. My grip on him slipped as I ripped off a part of his cuff frill. I landed hard on a rock floor below and looked up to him.

"OHHHhh, don't give me that look." He mocked in a pouting voice, "This is for your own good! ...Tah! HAhahaha!"

And with that the door was slammed closed.

Tired, and out of options I sat alone in the dim light.

_It's for my own good._


	19. Chapter 19 - Connecting all the Pieces

Chapter 19 - Connecting all the Pieces

"It's for my own good." I half chuckled to myself as I sat alone in the dark. "Hahaha! It's, _HA_, for my own - goo_hoohoohoohoo_odaha _haha_!" Tears streamed down my cheeks and I could feel myself letting go of what was real. "I understand now! _All_ you have been doing for me, was for _my_ own good!"

I pulled my fingers through my hair as I looked up to the trap door and fell silent. The door looked like a sawed out chunk of old wood flooring; the faint light of the cave above leaked between the planks in silence. I breathed out heavily and gripped the back of my neck as my elbows rested on my knees. I started to hear a few faint, muffled voices from above. It was the Losers club for sure.

_Sounds like they just found Beverly_, I thought.

I tucked my knees tighter to my chest, and locked my fingers together as I dropped my head.

"I'm not done." my voice cracked, "I'm not finished with you yet. Because I understand now. You care. Somewhere in there you care.. You just don't know how to show it." I released my hands and leaned back on the cold stone wall, longingly staring at the trap door above. "I came to this town for a reason. I thought that reason was for me to start a new life. But. I think it was for you. To help you. To _save_ you."

My body felt numb. But it wasn't numb enough to feel the tug in my heart. It felt right to give in, and I never _truly_ gave it a try. I leaned back on the rock wall at watched the streams of light trickle trough the darkness.

_When should I go to him? _I questioned.

All went silent.

A tiny drip of water kissed my forehead. I blinked in surprise and wiped it off. It was so quiet that it was almost deafening; my ears began to ring, so I shifted my feet just so I could hear something; the scrapping of my shoes against the stone floor echoed in the dark chamber.

BANG!

I jumped at the sudden sound from above and stood quickly. My breathing immediately grew heavy with worry and my heart began to race.

"P-Pennywise?"

I heard nothing in return and began to panic.

"PENNYWISE!" I shouted. But there was still no answer. My eyes raced around in search of movement, but there was nothing. All was still. "Oh, shit." I jumped up on the rock wall and began to climb. The rocks felt damp and cold on my skin as I reached up to grip them one by one. I reached up to the trap door but I couldn't quite reach. I steped up one more small ledge and reached again; I felt my shoe slip and I slid down the wall. "SHIT!" I scoffed as I recovered, desperately gripping the jagged rocks.. "Gah!" I felt a sharp pain on my right hand and paused.

I looked down at my palm to see the rock had cut it. My wound was wide and gaping; the blood oozed and slid down my wrist. "God damn." It stung, but I had to get up top. The sounds of angry roars began to shake the walls. _Pennywise! He's still alive!_

I rushed up the wall faster, doing my best to protect my newly acquired injury. The trap door creaked open as I pushed it up; it was heavier than I expected and let out a grunt as I shoved it open. Now stained with my bloody hand print, it slammed the floor boards as I pulled myself out of the hole.

"KILL IT BILL! KILLIT!" Eddie shouted.

"Oh shit.." Richie gasped.

Shocked at the sudden volume of the shouts, I ran to the stage of the caravan and looked around desperately.

"KILLITKILLITKILLIT!" Eddie continued as the others began to join him.

"Oh, no." I jumped down the garbage pile and slid down. _How am I going to stop them? _I ran around the corner to see everyone facing away from me and staring at Pennywise. My heart pushed a flash of relief through my veins as I saw him hunched there smiling at Bill. Everyone was to busy shouting at him to notice me. Bill was right in front of the clown holding up what looked like a bolt stunner against Pennywise's forehead. I felt a lump in my throat begin grow, and I suddenly had a loss of words. I raised my hand to stop him, but it was too late.

_Ching!_

It wasn't the same striking sound from earlier, but I flinched anyway. I gasped and covered my mouth to stop my scream, and froze. Everyone looked shocked as Pennywise's head immediately crack and cave.

"Oh shit." Richie repeated.

Pennywise began to have an internal fit; his face began to convulse and his body began to shake. His torso shot backwards and black goo shot from his forehead. I watched in horror as he screeched and shook his body violently till it faced forward; hiis voice was filled with rage as the screech morphed to a roar. He launched at Bill as everyone stepped back.

"Watch out!" Eddie cried.

Pennywise landed right on top of Bill as Bill lifted the bolt stunner up in defence. The clown bit down on it like a rabid dog; growling and drooling as Bill stared helplessly looked up at him. Beverly pulled a metal bar from the heap and ran towards them.

"Bev-" I stepped towards her, but it was too late.

"Leave him alone!" She roared as she thrust the bar above her head and swung it down towards the clown. Pennywise ripped the bolt stunner out of Bills hand and spat it across the cave as he turned to Beverly and caught the bar in his hand. Like a dragon, his angered roar shook the walls around us breaking look some pebbles that fell to the cave floor.

"Beverly No!" Richie shouted as Pennywise shoved Beverly back. The clown stood up to attack her, but Mike jumped between them. This was my chance.

"Beverly!" I reached out and touched her shoulder. She jumped at my touch, but didn't hesitate to lunge forward and hold me in her arms.

"Nikita! OHMYGOD! You're okay!" She gasped in my ear as she squeezed me tighter. I hugged her back quickly but our reunion had to wait, I had to tell her. I held her out and grabbed the sides of her shoulders.

"Beverly we can't kill him!"

"WhAT!?"

"We _can't_ kill him."

Beverly's face twisted as if she just ate some bad fruit and stared at me in confusion.

"Listen, I-"

Mike screamed, interrupting my focus on Beverly. We both turned just in time to dodge his body flying just over us. He slammed into the garbage heap and collapsed to the ground. Beverly and I rushed to his aid as the pile shook from the force. It rumbled and a few toys toppled to the ground around us. We pulled Mike to his feet and heard a crash from above. I looked up to see a solid wood trunk plummeting towards us. I shoved Beverly and Mike to safety, but froze before I could jump out of its way. I stared up at it bracing for impact but someone collided with me, and jammed me tight against a little nook in the wall of toys.

I felt slightly winded, but was relieved to hear the crash of the trunk with out feeling pain. I opened my eyes to see Pennywise and my heart fluttered. He once again had me in his arms, and this time I let him hold me. The world seemed to slow as I reached up to hold his cheek.

"I understand now." I whispered. His eyes were soft as he gazed down to me. His warm gloved hand slid up my cheek and brushed my hair back. He bit his lip slightly and opened his mouth to speak, but before he could say anything, a bar flew around his head and landed in his mouth. Bill jumped on his back, gripped either side of the bar in the clowns mouth, and yanked him away from me.

"Wait." I whispered. But no one heard. Pennywise spun around to get him off, but Richie jumped on him to help hold him down. "Wait!" I stepped forward to help Pennywise, but Beverly grabbed my arm.

"Are you okay?"

"Okay? Of coarse I'm okay! Why wouldn't I be!?" I spat back at her. "It's him thats not okay!" I jerked her arm off of me and ran towards pennywise, who was now completely covered in the Losers club. "Stop!" I shouted, "Stop!" Mike stepped back from the group and held his arm out to stop me.

Beverly stood back and watched me in disbelief; her expression blank and observant.

Ben bit down on Pennywise's hand and the clown roared in pain. He spun with greater force, throwing each kid off of him one by one. He shoved Ben away with his hand; Ben staggered backwards as Pennywise thew Stan across the cave, who rolled into the wall. Pennywise then flipped Richie over his head as he chucked him about a meter away. He struggled to get a grip on Bill, but eventually grabbed the loop of his backpack and whipped him over his head as well. Pennywise pinned Bill on the ground and desperately crawled over top of him, then confirming his grip before looking back at us. Beverly gathered everyone tighter together and they turned to the deranged clown who was now holding their friend hostage. Each one cried out to him.

"No d-don't!" Bill pleaded.

Beverly looked cross and stepped forward.

"Let him go!" She barked.

Pennywise cringed as his hands gripped and padded Bill's chin and chest.

"NO." His gruff voice spat. "I will T_aKe_ him.. I will take ALLL of you! And I will FEast on your FLEsh, as I FEEd on your FEAR.." Everyone shifted as his lip twitched and curled up in a sick grin. I felt ill. What could I do to stop this war. _He is only saying this in self defence,_ I convinced myself. Pennywise opened his mouth slowly as he raised a shaking finger; the ruffles on his sleeve vibrated in terror as he continued to speak. "OOORRR.. You just leave us be." A wash of relief came over me. "I will take _him_. ONLY _him_.." The illness returned to my stomach as I watched helplessly. "And I will have my long reST, and you will all live and _THriVe_ and lead _HAAAAAPPY_ Live_SSSS - _Until old age takes to bAC_K_ to the _Weeeeeds_.." He trailed off and desperately mumbled to himself as bits of saliva rolled off his lip. His eyes were bright yellow and laced with a raging red, they darted around making eye contact with each Loser before resting them on me. My mouth dropped open to speak, but Bill lifted his chin from the clowns grip and spoke first.

"Leave." His voice cracked. "I'm the one who dragged you all into thissss-s. I'm Ss-so Ssorry." Pennywise muttered Bill's words under his breath as he looked back to the others and chuckled. "GO!" Bill demanded. I looked over to the others who where sharing nervous glances to each other, secretly confirming what their next move is. Beverly didn't turn back to confirm with me. No one did. They behaved as if I wasn't even there. Guilt twisted at the base of my stomach, _how could I fix this now?_

"Guys, we can't" Bev said.

"I'm sorry." Bill whispered as Richie lowered his eyebrows and began to stand.

"I told you Bill," he started, "I fucking told you. I don't want to die. It's your fault. You punched me in the face. You made me walk through shitty WATER, YOU BROUGHT ME TO A FUCKING CRACK-HEAD HOUSE!" Pennywise watched Richie untrustingly as if he knew what he was about to say next; the light glowed through his fierily orange hair. "And now." Richie stated as he reached out and pulled a bat from the garbage pile. "I'm going to have to kill the fucking _clown_." Pennywise scowled and tossed Bill aside; his eyes burning with hate as Richie held his bat up in the air and shouted, "WELCOME TO THE LOSERS CLUB ASS HOLE!"

I gasped as Pennywise lunged at Richie, who swung the bat right into the side of his head. He staggered sideways as Mike stepped ahead wound up to hit him too. The clown turned as his mouth split open, releasing several burnt arms, each somehow screaming in pain. Two of them caught the rod before it hit the clown. They curled out of Pennywise's mouth, as if reaching desperately for freedom. Mikes face looked surprised as a few of them clawed at the air around him.

I stepped forward to grab Mike, but Beverly stepped in front of me and shoved me back.

"If you're not with us, you're against us." She spat. I stared at her in disbelief as I tried to piece some words together.

"I'm _not_." I managed to get out.

"You're not what? With us!? I saw how you looked that that monster!"

"He's not a monster! He's just - JUST misunderstood!" I shouted and cringed, knowing just how ridiculous that must have sounded, as she looked at me disgusted.

"HE IS RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL OF THE MISSING KIDS IN DERRY!" She roared as she charged at me. I stepped back and looked down. "What has he done to you to make you think for a _SECOND_ that he was good?" I paused before answering, but I couldn't explain it. It was just a feeling deep down.

"_You wouldn't understand_.." I whispered.

"Bev!" Stan shouted and pointed, pulling both Beverly and I's attention away from each other and towards Mike, who was desperately rolling away from the giant spider legs that Pennywise now had as arms. The clown was laughing hysterically as he jabbed his claws one by one towards the boy, each time getting a little closer to his target. We both ran towards them to help; although I would like to think I was going to help Mike, I knew was really planning to help Pennywise. I leapt between Mike and the clown as I held my hands up in the air.

"STOP!" I shouted. Pennywise paused as his chest made contact with my hands and looked at me trying to hold back the fire behind his eyes.

Ben shouted and stabbed Pennywise in the back with Mikes metal rod. It burst through Pennywise's stomach and splashed blood all over my face and mouth. I flinched and backed away as the clown roared in pain. The noise echoed through the cave and rattled the walls. Blood spewed from his would and his arms flailed. They spit into black tentacles; curling and flicking as they shrunk back into his shoulders. Blood spat out from his sockets and floated up into the air as his arms quickly grew back. Blood hovered around Pennywise as he tried to turn to look at Ben who stood his ground. Sweat dripped down Ben's forehead as he gripped the rod tight in place.

I spat out the blood that leaked into my mouth and desperately tried to wipe it out of my eyes. The screams of my friends intensified as I heard the rattle of a chain. I opened my eyes and looked back to see the Losers circling Pennywise. Each one was taking turns kicking and beating him; Bill whipped him with a chain as Richie followed up with his bat.

"S-stop." I stuttered under my breath. I ran towards the group but Mike stepped in front of me again and held out his hand to stop me; his eyes were kind but his face was tense. "Mike, please. You don't understand."

"No Nikita. You don't understand." His eyes intensified, as we heard intense vomiting sounds from the fight. We both looked over to see Eddie covered in black slime. He gagged and threw up and he stood.

"I'M GOING TO FUCKING KILL YOU!" He screeched. His little body vibrated as he launched at the clown, who was now on all fours, and kicked him square in the face. My heart hurt as I watched Pennywise twist backwards in pain.

"No!" I shouted.

Beverly looked back at me and glared. She gripped her metal rod as she tuned back around and stepped forward to have her hit at the demonic clown. Pennywise spun on the ground and paused facing Beverly as she approached him. He slowly looked up to her. His face was different. It was her fathers. The air grew thick and everyone fell silent, as Pennywise smirked. His new face had a few bumps and scrapes on it, but his eyes still glowed a hot yellow. Beverly's face fell pale, but her feet did not stop walking towards him.

"Hey Bevy," He cooed, "are you still my little - "

Beverly screamed with all her might and launched the metal bar through his mouth and deep into throat. His face quickly became consumed with his white make up as Beverly gave the rod one last twist before letting it go. Pennywise gaged as she stepped back, still panting from the amount of force she used. She bumped into Richie and I as she quickly stumbled backwards; with the look of pure shock splashed across her face.

Shocked, Pennywise stared up into the air for a moment before he spat the bar out. It launched across the cave and clattered on the ground, followed my the splatter of saliva and coughing sounds.

"Oh shit!" Richie blurted out as everyone watched and waited for the clowns next move.

Pennywise hesitated and looked around to each Loser, none of them looked afraid of him anymore. His face was in shock and his eyes began to look desperate as they fell upon me. His hair was messy and flat, and he was covered in blood and sewer water. I have never seen him look so alone before. I felt my heart gravitate towards him, as I took a step closer. His arms widened as if asking for help as he fell backwards. The Losers walked in unison towards him as he desperately crawled backwards and gasped for air.

"Wait." I said, but no one listened. "Guys wait!" I followed the group as they cornered the hopeless clown on the edge of a drain pipe.

Pennywise helplessly gripped the pipe behind him and shook his head. Saliva spewed from his lips as if he was downing in it, and desperately gasped for air. He chuckled under his breath as if to pretend he was doing fine, but it quickly faded into sobs when he noticed the losers didn't care. They no longer feared him, and he new it.

"That's why you didn't kill Beverly," Bill said as he stepped forward, "cause sh-shshe wasn't afraid. We aren't either. Not anymore. Now you're the one who's afraid. Because you're going to starve." Bills eyes pierced though Pennywise like daggers.

The clown was shaking as tears began to stream down his round cheeks. His eyes desperately looked around the room as he bit his lip and sobbed.

"That's enough!" I finally shouted. The group split as I walked between them and the broken clown. Everyone looked shocked except for Beverly; she watched me with untrusting eyes. "You can't do this.."

"Nikita?" Bill asked.

"It's not right." I continued, "Look at him!" I pointed my hand towards Pennywise who sat cowering; snot and tears dripped off of his chin.

"N-Nikita, this thing k-killed GGgoergie."

"I know..."

"And countless other kids!" Beverly interrupted.

"I know!" I shouted back, "You don't know how hard this is for me to say, but there is more to him than just that! He has shown me kindness! He can feel so much more that just hunger! I promise you that!"

"PPpromissse.." Pennywise stuttered in a whisper behind me. I turned slightly to look at him and drew in a deep breath before looking back to the ones I've called my friends all summer.

"I can't let you do this to him."

"The fuck you aren't!" Richie blurted. Beverly stepped forward and grabbed my shoulder.

"Nikita, you are unwell. He has done something to you. Just a few hours ago you were ready to kill him!" Her bright green eyes glistened in the dim light of the cave as they darted back and forth to look deep in each of mine. "We have come so far. _We_ need to do this."

"I can't let you." I could feel the pain of those words as slipped between my lips, and I could see Beverly's heart sink. "You are still my best friend Beverly." I reached up and held her hand, that was still resting on my shoulder. A slight chuckle grew from behind us.

"Haha, Best - Ffriendsss." Pennywise giggled under his breath as his eyes glowed in victory.

"Mike. Bill." Beverly said without taking her eyes off the clown. "NOW!" Beverly jumped and grabbed me, dragging me out of the way as Mike lunged forward and held me tight.

"No!" I shouted.

Bill stepped towards Pennywise, who had already reverted back to crying. He pushed himself up against the pipe and searched for an exit. His head twisted around and looked down the dark tunnel to no where. Bill stepped closer as the clown flipped backwards and dangled into the darkness.

"Hh-ee thrustsss hiss f-fistss ag-gainst the possstsss, A-and still insists h-he sseess the g-ghostss." Pennywise chanted under his breath as he gripped the edge of the pipe. Stan slowly handed Bill a thick pipe, and Bill gripped it tight like a baseball bat.

"No!" I cried.

Bill clenched his jaw tight and lifted the pipe above his head. But the clowns grip slipped a little and his head began to crack. He stopped chanting and stared up at Bill as pieces of skin, bone and brain matter began to peel off of him and drift into the air around his head. The group of kids stepped forward to see the clown one last time. Beverly and Mike released their grip on me and we ran to the pipes side to see him as well. Pennywise looked like he was done, all hope had left his eyes, and he knew he was defeated. The hole in his head looked as black as the darkness below him, and it began to consume most of his face. Bill lowered the pipe and watched in satisfaction as the clown struggled.

"Fear." Pennywise said, as he let go of the ledge and dropped into the darkness below.

I gasped and covered my mouth as tears burned through my eyes.

"no.." I whispered.

Everyone fell silent and watched as everyone except me let out a silent sigh of relief.

"I know what I'm doing for my summer experience essay." Richie said.

Bill and Beverly hugged as everyone slowly snapped out of the trance. The fight was over. They slowly looked at each other and turned to leave the sewer.

"Nikita, It's over." Beverly's voice cooed from beside me, as I felt a reassuring hand on my arm. "Come on. Let's go."

I griped the edge of the pipe and stared down into the darkness as Beverly turned to walk away with the others. A slight breeze drifted up the pipe, my hair tickled my cheeks and I could smell the intoxicating aroma of popcorn. _He's still alive!_ I thought to myself. Beverly turned around to see me still enchanted by the darkness.

"Nikita? Are you coming?" She asked. My arms shook as I tried to come up with the right words to answer her.

"No.."

"What?"

"No.. I can't. I belong here." Tears streamed down my face as I looked up to her. She began to look panicked.

"Nikita.. We have a plan. We are going to move away together, right?"

I shot her a sympathetic look and climbed onto the edge of the pipe. I balanced on its edge and stood up straight, not removing my eyes from the darkness below.

"Nikita NO!" Beverly shouted as she ran towards me. I blinked slowly and looked towards Beverly.

"I'm sorry." I drew in a deep breath and closed my eyes as I stepped of of the edge.

"NIKITA!" Beverly ran to the edge of the pipe and reached for me. She grabbed my elbow catching me in mid air. I heard her grunt against the side of the drain pipe as I slammed into its cold wet wall.

"Beverly, it's okay. Let me go."

Beverly shook her head as tears ran down her cheeks. Her lips were pushed tightly together and her grip tightened.

"It's okay. I belong here." I reached up and wrapped my fingers around hers. "Goodbye Beverly. You are truly a good friend." I pulled my arm free from her grip and could feel the sensation of falling once again. Something string like caught between my fingers and snapped as I watched the image of of Beverly and light of the world fade; I could hear her cries and screams echo the pipe as I descended. I felt the string still in my fingers as I let go of my fear and let the darkness consume me.

* * *

Note:

Thank you SO MUCH to those who have been following along, for all of your wonderful support on this adventure so far! I hope you are enjoying it as much as I am!

And If you are new to reading this story, and like what you are experiencing, please leave a comment! I love reading about what you think!

The **FINAL** Chapter is Coming Soon! Followed by a wicked awesome surprise!

Until then, CHEERS!


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